The Game Changer
by GCatsPjs
Summary: Silent Mistakes Sequel... Unchronological Oneshots into the lives of our dynamic duo.
1. Twister

**A/N- There are several things you need to know about this story before you start to read.**

**1. It is a sequel to my story 'Silent Mistakes' ... No, you don't HAVE to read Silent Mistakes before you read this, but you could... and if you do, let me know what you think. ;)**

**2. This is absolutely, positively, without a doubt... NOT in chronological order. It is a series of oneshots that follow the B&B relationship in their 'Post Silent Mistakes' glory. Don't ask for it to be in chronological order, it will never be in chronological order, and I will not accept requests for it to be in chronological order. If it's confusing... i'm sorry... You can purchase a calendar at your local calendar store and figure out the timing if you'd like... There will be indicators of the approximate time in each update... but really... does anybody really know what time it is? Does anybody really care?**

**3. Read and Review at your convenience... **

**4. Love you. :) **

**Love and Sid,**

**PJ.**

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><p><span>Twister<span>

The wind howled outside angrily, sending the rain barreling into the window pane like pellets from a rifle. So loud and disturbing, that the sound of the door creaking open slowly was barely heard.

"Mama?" A voice whispered through the room, soft and frightened. "Mama?"

Brennan was roused not by the storm, but the fear in the voice of the little boy at her door. She flinched at the gust of wind that slammed into the window. "Benji?"

Instead of answering, the four year old ran at full speed and launched himself onto the bed, crawling quickly toward the pillows, clinging to his mother with clenched fists. Brennan's arms wrapped protectively around him.

"It's alright, baby." She whispered.

He mumbled something into her and she struggled to hear it, simply feeling his fingernails digging into her a little more. "What was that?" She asked, trying to pry his fingertips from her skin. "Baby, I can't hear you."

"Don't let her get me." He cried.

"Don't let who get you? Benji, what are you talking about?"

Booth rolled over to face his wife and child, and in the flashes of lighting, she caught his concerned glance as the little boy cried into his mother's shoulder. "What is it?" He whispered, his eyes moving to the window and back to the boy. "The storm?"

"Sweetheart, are you afraid of the lightning and thunder?"

He shook his head against his mother, tears wetting her t-shirt as he cried. "No."

"Benji, what are you so afraid of? You can tell mama."

"Don't let her take me." He sobbed again.

"Benjamin, I don't know what you mean." Brennan whispered. "Don't let who take you?"

"The witch!" He exclaimed. He looked up and in the lightning flash, she could see his terrified expression. The wind howled against the window, sending more rain slamming against the side of the house.

"The witch?" Brennan asked, looking to Booth. She could feel her own fear of the storm starting to churn her stomach, but she kept her fear at bay. Holding her son in her arms was something she found quite soothing against the violence of a storm, the perfect deterrent of irrational fears. "Booth, he…"

"The Wizard of oz, Bones." Booth grinned.

"The L. Frank Baum story?" She asked, still holding her trembling son. "I don't think a story book is going to calm his fears, Booth."

"No." Booth shook his head. "He thinks the witch is coming to get him, like the movie. Bones, the storm." He said, carefully rubbing his son's back. "Hey, pal." Booth said, kissing the boy's head. "You don't have to worry about witches getting in here."

"There's a witch outside my room, Daddy." Benji said, sniffling as his mother held him. His eyes were wide, and his expression was solemn and challenging. "I heard her telling me she's going to get me."

"Sweetheart, that was just a movie." Brennan said. Benji shook his head. "It wasn't real."

"I saw it." He replied. "I saw the witch outside my window. Don't you believe me, mama?" He asked.

This time, her gaze was challenged by two sets of eyes. Both Benjamin and Booth were now looking at her curiously. She could see by the challenge in his eyes that he was just on the cusp of asking her if she believed the boy too.

So she took the challenge. "Do you want to show me where this witch is?" She asked. "And I will tell her that you are my little boy, and that she can't have you."

"What if she doesn't listen?" Benji whispered.

"Then we'll let her take daddy." She winked, and the little boy let out a giggle. "Let's go see if we can find this witch." She said, pulling her feet from the bed, she slid from the sheets. Benjamin clung to her and she lifted him, letting him wrap his legs around her securely. "Are you coming with us?" She asked Booth.

"You two are ready to sacrifice me." He said, his voice sounding faux defensive. "I'll stay here and make sure the witch doesn't come in here."

"Are you sure, Daddy?" Benji asked.

A loud clap of thunder, made all three of them jump. "On second thought..." Booth said, throwing the covers to the side, he climbed from the bed and followed, holding his son's gaze as they ventured down the dark hallway together.

Benji held his mother tightly, their steps sneaking slowly as if they were expecting to sneak up on someone waiting in the room. As they turned the corner, the dim light of the little football nightlight in the wall greeted them. The wind was still howling angrily, and the tree near Benji's window waved in the shadow of the lightning, giving the impression of long fingernails swaying in the breeze. "See Mommy!" He said excitedly, not so much afraid anymore with his parents at his side. "See the witch?"

Brennan stopped and gasped, playing along with her son's imagination for a moment. She heard Booth's chortled laugh, watching her from the doorway. "Go away, you witch." She said sternly.

"Yeah! You don't know what you're messin' with!" Benjamin exclaimed, his chest puffing with pride.

"That's right…" She said definitively, stepping closer to the window. Benji closed his eyes and pressed his face against his mother's shoulder, afraid of what they would find when they reached the window.

"Mama, don't go any farther, she might grab me from you."

"You think I'd let go?" She asked, feigning shock.

"No." He said, looking up. He saw his father standing quite amused at the doorway. "Daddy, tell the witch to go away." He said.

"I think you guys are doing a pretty good job." He smiled. "Is she still there?" He asked, moving toward the window, Benji hid his face again, concerned that his daddy would be the next victim of that wicked witch. He looked up after a moment, watching his father in the window.

"Is she gone?" He whispered.

Booth looked out of the window, blowing his warm breath against the pane of glass, he ran his finger over the glass. "Hey Ben, I think she wrote you a note over here…" He said.

Benji looked up, seeing the bit of steam on the window, he glanced to Brennan. She shrugged and he nodded, allowing her to walk toward the window. He held her tightly, and tried to be brave, glancing to the words that were on the window. "What does that say?" He asked.

"What does it look like?" Booth asked, watching his son look at the window curiously, his brow furrowed.

"That's my name." He whispered. "The witch knows my name." Recognizing the letters on the window pane.

"It says…'Bye, bye , Benji.'" Brennan said, glancing to Booth, she smiled.

"Bye bye?" Benji asked.

"Yep… I think she left…" Booth nodded, still seeing the tree swaying, he looked out the window and pressed nose against it. Brennan moved close and Benji did the same, pressing his nose against the window beside his father. "Do you see her?" He asked.

"Nope." Benjamin replied. "Mama?"

"Yes?"

"Let's go check your window in your room, too" He said, looking up at her. "Just in case."


	2. Mouse Trap

Mouse Trap

A lilting tune slipped between Booth's lips as he swept his way into the lab. Two steps in, he stopped, his eyes widening at the scene playing out before him. Everyone was on their hands and knees, everyone. Lab assistants, doctors, even a security guard were crawling around, their eyes focused on the floor.

Booth stepped slowly toward the platform, his eyes scanning as people talked in hushed tones. "Did someone lose a contact lens or something?" He asked, watching as several heads looked up to look at the visitor, and then went back to what they were doing. Booth gave a disapproving look and shook his head, moving toward Brennan's office. He stepped in her office, and noted that she wasn't there. Then he turned around.

"Booth?"

He heard her voice, and turned, but still, she wasn't anywhere to be seen. "Bones?"

"Booth?" She said again.

"Bones? Where are you?" He said, walking around her desk, he found her, also on her hands and knees. "What are you doing on the floor?"

"Looking for something." She said.

"Bones, you're eight months pregnant, you shouldn't be rolling around on the floor." He said, watching her turn her head and glare at him. "What? You shouldn't." 

Brennan sat up on her knees slowly, leaning on her desk. She looked up at her husband and sighed. "I really don't have a choice in the matter. Hodgins was working with one of the new interns… and there was a little bit of an accident."

Booth looked around, and back out into the lab. He saw two white streaks take off across the floor. "Bones, there are mice out there…"

"There are over fifty mice out there." She said.

"Fifty mice?"

"Fifty… in one container, and another fifty in the second. They were a part of an experiment that Hodgins was working on for the Henderson case…"

"And they're loose in the lab?"

"Yes." She said, looking down, she reached quickly and plucked a mouse from the floor by the tail. Booth grimaced at the dangling rodent. "So get on your hands and knees, and get to work." She said, watching his eyebrows lift.

"You're not serious."

She dropped the mouse into a small plastic cage, and closed the lid. "Have I been known to make jokes regarding the importance of the work we do here in the lab?"

"Bones… they're mice… can't you just… give Hodgins a flute or something, and he can play it… lead them all out into a contained room or something?"

Brennan's eyes narrowed as she pulled herself slowly into a standing position. "Are you making a reference to the story of the pied piper of Hamelin?"

He lifted an eyebrow. "Maybe."

"Because first of all, that story is exactly that… it's a story… and it's actually based on real events, though it has been romanticized to indicate the eradication of vermin in a town, it was actually representative of death. The piper being death itself, and the mice or rats, were the children of the town that had died." Brennan recited as if she were reading from a textbook.

"Whoa, wait… stop right there." He said, shaking his head, waving his hand in the air. "First of all… let's put a kibosh on mentioning death of children." He nodded toward her pregnant form. "The kid doesn't need to be hearing about that kind of thing…"

"Are you indicating that you want our child to be sheltered and ignorant?" She asked, looking around, she pointed across the room at a tiny white mouse that was sniffing near the trash can. He turned and snatched it up in his hand, quickly depositing it in the container she held out to him.

"No." He said, knowing full well that she was goading him. "I just think… that there is a time and a place for talking about death, and the womb just isn't one of them." He shrugged.

"I think that your argument holds value…" She shrugged. "But… for the record. You were the one that brought up the pied piper."

"Are you looking for an argument?" He asked, following another tiny white streak with his eyes as it scurried out into the lab.

"It seems to be a little more entertaining than crawling around on the floor looking for missing lab mice." She said, walking around her desk with the container. "Don't you agree?" She said, handing him the container. "So… drop on your knees…with the rest of them, and have at it."

"See… in my fantasies, it's…"

"Booth." She interrupted, trying not to laugh at his blatant innuendo.

"Yes, dear?" He said, his voice slightly mocking.

"Mice."

He watched her for a moment, narrowing his eyes. "You said we had something to work on… case related."

"Henderson case." She smiled, leaning forward to drop a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you." She said, turning toward her desk, she flashed him a retreating wave, as he shook his head and walked out of the office, in search of Hodgins, and the clumsy intern.


	3. Don't Break The Ice

Don't Break The Ice

Booth sat in the living room on the couch, leaning slightly over with his index fingers pointed out. Each finger was being grasped by a tiny hand, as a pair of blue eyes blazed up at him. The tiny bottom wobbled as Benjamin's feet seemingly gripped the floor with his toes.

"Look at that… standing up like a big boy." Booth cooed softly, glancing toward the doorway. "Your mama says that it's a little early for you to be walking, but we don't believe her, do we?" He said, feeling the baby wobble a little as he continued to stand on his feet, his tiny fingers still wrapped around his father's fingers. He giggled at the face Booth made at him. "She doesn't seem to understand that all you need is a little practice, and you'll be moving so quickly, she won't even see you."

"I don't think that he'll be moving at the speed of sound anytime soon." Brennan said, stepping around the corner, Booth scooped up the baby and grinned at her. "You can stunt his development if he walks too soon, Booth. His feet may not develop properly, his legs could bow."

"His legs aren't going to bow, Bones." Booth replied. "He's a strong guy, a tough guy, right, Benji?" He asked, making a face that sent the boy into another cascade of giggles. "The truth is, you don't want him to grow up." Booth said, following after Brennan as she walked around the room toward the small table near the door. She stopped, and Booth nearly ran into her.

"Of course he's going to grow up." She said, furrowing her brow. "He is right on track in his development. Perfectly on schedule, as he should be."

"Bones, you can't schedule his entire life." He said, shaking his head. "You can't decide exactly when he's going to start walking, what day he's going to start eating dry cereal, when his first tooth will come in…what day he will be potty trained." He smiled at the boy. "I'm looking forward to that day, by the way."

"I can control the first day he eats dry cereal." She said, a slight scowl on her face. She was tempted to pull the boy from his father's arms, a slight tinge of jealousy. She had learned to curb that feeling for the most part, but it was always present, it didn't matter who was holding the child. "I just don't…"

"You don't want him to grow up too fast."

"Quickly. I don't want him growing up too quickly." She corrected, giving into her need for a moment, she held her arms out, and Booth willingly gave up the child to his wife. She kissed his cheek and the boy cuddled into her.

"Ha. So you admit it." Booth laughed, following her through the house as he dodged a couple of toys.

"I admit to nothing." She said, watching as he stepped on a riding toy and tried to hold his balance. She watched and tried to grab for him, but it was too late, and his momentum was sending him hurtling to the floor. "Booth!" She exclaimed, watching him tumble to the floor, she closed her eyes as he landed hard on his back with a yelp. When she opened her eyes she looked down at him, staring up at her and Benjamin with a look of shock in his eyes. "Are you okay?" She asked.

"I think so."

"Do you need help up?"

"Just… give me a second." He whispered, closing his eyes.

"Did you hurt yourself?"

"No." He replied.

"Bruise your ego just a bit?" She asked, watching him hold up two fingers pinched together as he peeked at her.

"Just a little."

She smiled and looked to Benjamin, pleased that he hadn't actually hurt himself, she shook her head. "And your daddy thinks that he should be the one teaching you to walk." She said, giving the boy a little poke in the belly to make him laugh. "Maybe you can learn from one another." She said, leaning down, she placed the baby on his father's chest, just as Booth opened his eyes and took hold of him.

"Very funny, Bones."

"I find that I can be quite humorous if the opportunity arises." She said, quite pleased with herself. "You can get started on that potty training lesson any time you like." She said, nodding toward the baby, she turned around and laughed as Booth called out to her to come back, as he laughed at her smile from the doorway.

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><p><strong>AN I am waiting patiently for someone to accuse me of Booth bashing... What can I say? He's the perfect foil... However... each oneshot is different, so don't discriminate... because I don't... :) ... And... they won't all be as sunshiney and happy as this one, so don't get too caught up in the fluff that you can't get out.**


	4. Ring Toss

Ring Toss

Brennan stood at the dishwasher, putting the dishes away into their rightful places when her eyes flicked to the little boy shuffling into the room. "There you are, my sleepy boy." She said. He rubbed his eyes and yawned. His bottom lip protruded slightly when he looked at her, and the pout was evident. "Daddy already left for work, so you're stuck with me this morning.

Ben said nothing, let out a little sigh and walked toward his play table. "Ready for breakfast, I guess." She said, frowning as she stepped to the cupboard and pulled down a box of cereal. She found his favorite green bowl in the clean dishes and put a good amount of Cheerios into it. "I'll get you a banana too, okay."

"Mm…" He grunted, a little man of few words at this hour of the morning, she shook her head. With that messy mop of hair on top of his head, and that morning scowl, she realized how much he really looked like his father. She placed the bowl in front of him and dropped a kiss on top of his head. His hand was already reaching for the bowl, a small fist grabbed hold of the cereal inside and shoved it into his little mouth.

"Please remember your manners." She said, handing him a spoon, he took it from her and scooped the cereal, a small smile finally coming to his lips when his mother put a cup of juice beside him at the table. Brennan leaned down and dropped a kiss on his head, and watched as he grabbed a hand full of cereal off the spoon and shoved it into his mouth. She rolled her eyes and walked to the counter, where she began to cut up half of a banana. When she turned around, Ben was nowhere to be seen.

Her brow furrowed. "Benji?" She called, putting the plate with banana slices down on the counter. Her eyes met with those of their dog Rebel, his brown eyes pleading with her for just a bite. "Don't you even think about it." She said, regarding the plate, and she turned away in search of her son. "Benji, you didn't finish your breakfast." She said, noting that the bowl was still half full of cereal. She walked toward the bathroom, noting that the door was slightly ajar, she was a little nervous. She knew that Booth had been working with him to potty train, and from what her husband had claimed, he was doing very well.

Then she heard his giggle, and the sound of rustling, and she walked faster to the bathroom, swinging open the door, her hand went to her mouth. Standing above his little potty, Benji stood with a now empty box of cheerios. It was piled high and spilled to the floor, the little mountain of cereal. "Benjamin, what are you doing?" She asked, quickly grabbing the box of cereal from him. She didn't want to frighten him, or do anything to discourage him from his potty training, but from what she could tell, he seemed pretty intent on his goal.

"That's how daddy does it." He said, starting to tug at his pajamas.

"Benji…" She closed her eyes, turned her head and rubbed her forehead with her hand. She didn't know what to say to him, or how to explain that what he had done was wrong. She had no idea what Booth had told him. After a moment, she heard the gentle tinkle of the little boy peeing, and her hand gripped the cardboard box a little tighter. After another moment, she heard him shift, pull his pants up, and then the big toilet flushed.

She then heard the little boy's feet slapping on the floor as he walked around her, a look of concern on his face when he saw his mother rubbing her eyes. "Bull's-eye, Mama." He smiled, giving her that charming grin that could get him just about anything he ever wanted, he stepped up on to the step stool at the sink, and waited for her to help him wash up.


	5. Connect Four

Connect Four

A long, irritated sigh echoed through the room, that lifted Brennan's attention from the case file she was reading. She brought her attention to the boy sitting across from her, his face leaning on his hand as he glared down at the piece of paper in front of him. She watched for a few moments, and he flipped his pencil over, and began to feverishly erase what he had written. He let out a low, angry growl.

"Parker?" Brennan said, hoping that perhaps she could quell his anger at the piece of paper in front of him. He looked up at her. "Trouble with your homework?"

"No." He said impatiently, sighing as he wrote something down, holding the paper with one hand as he drew a line. He stared at the paper, and started to erase it again. Then he lifted the paper and crumpled it in his hand. He looked up and saw that Brennan was still watching him. He scowled and sat back in the chair.

"Are you giving up?" She asked.

"I don't know." He shrugged, still scowling.

"Perhaps I could help." She shrugged, trying not to push him. Being a pre-teen was tough enough without your step-mother inserting her help or opinions where it didn't belong. She hadn't had any problems with Parker on that front, but wasn't about to start now. "If you want me to." She shrugged.

"You can't help, Bones. Not with this." He shrugged, sighed, and flipped open his notebook. Carefully he pulled a paper from the binding, and placed it in front of him. "I am supposed to be writing my family tree."

"Ah…" She nodded. "Tracing your lineage can be very difficult if you don't have the details." She explained.

"We're supposed to write what we know, and have our parents help us. It's just confusing because mom and dad don't live together, and…" He shrugged. "Nevermind." He said, starting to write on the paper.

"And what?" She asked. "What's the problem, Parker? You can talk to me about it."

"I don't know where to put you." He replied, looking up at her. "You're in my family, where do you go on the paper?"

She could understand his confusion and frustration, and watched for a moment as he stared down at the blank sheet. "I am not an important part of what you're doing, here Parker. You are the important one." She said, pointing at the paper. "You start with yourself, and you work yourself up as far as you can go."

"I have to write traits and stuff about each person, if I know them…" Parker explained.

"Alright… what did you put next to you?" She asked, watching him write.

"Um… brown eyes, light hair… um… what else?"

"We can start there." She said, smiling. "Now put your mom and dad." She said, pointing at the paper, he started to write.

"And I should describe what they look like, right?"

"That's right…" She smiled. She could see by how he was eagerly writing, that he had caught his stride and was happy with the bit of encouragement that she was giving him. He went on to include his grandparents on his mother's side, and what he remembered of his father's dad.

"I don't know anything about my dad's mom." He said, frowning.

"Then write what you do know… you know Pops."

"Yeah." He nodded, writing his descriptions down. "And Uncle Jared, too."

"See, you have it." She smiled.

"Thanks, Bones." He said with a smile.

Booth came through the door, pulling off his suit jacket; he placed it on the back of Brennan's chair, and leaned down to catch a kiss. "Hey."

"Hey." She smiled. "We're just finishing up some homework here."

"Yeah?" Booth asked, glancing to the paper. "Family tree, huh?"

"Yep." Parker nodded. "And traits too…"

"You should put down that you and I both like sports." He nodded, leaning over his son's paper.

"Booth, he needs physical traits, not environmental traits." Brennan explained.

"What do you mean?" Booth asked, "The Phillies fandom runs in our blood. It's a true genetic trait." He argued seriously, and caught his wife's glare as she shook her head.

"You know that isn't possible, Booth. You can't pass on a specific sports preference by blood and genetics. It's due to environmental stimulation, and education, experience." She said, following his stride as he stepped around her and glanced down at the case work she was looking at.

"That's not true." Booth said. "I was a born Phillies fan, just ask Pops, he'll tell you."

Parker watched the back and forth and smiled. He kept writing, and laughed when Brennan scoffed.

"Parker, put down that you're a Flyer's fan like your old man. It's alright…"

"Parker, physical traits… " Brennan corrected.

Parker pulled out another piece of paper and continued writing as Brennan and Booth continued their back and forth about environmental vs. genetic. It was becoming louder, and more laughable with each second, and Booth was becoming animated as Brennan stood up and continued arguing as she picked up her books.

Booth was walking around her now, his grin was wide as he goaded her further. She continued to argue back, and the door suddenly swung open. Two year old Benjamin, stood in the doorway completely naked. Brennan and Booth exchanged a look. "Hi." The boy said, waving at his parents.

"I just changed him…He was in his playpen." Booth said. "Hey, buddy… you escaped."

Ben screeched as he ran from his father, laughing as the little naked boy streaked through the house with Booth hot on his heels. After a moment, Brennan heard a loud screech, and giggling as Booth stepped back into the room, the little boy was now wrapped in the throw blanket from the couch, and Brennan tried to look stern.

"It appears your son has inherited your love for running around the house naked." She said, watching Booth's jaw drop.

Parker let out a laugh.

"Don't you laugh at her!" Booth exclaimed. "Whose side are you on?"

Parker laughed as he packed up his books and listened to Bones and Booth start to bicker a little more. "I think my homework is all done." He said, watching both of them glance to him. "Thanks, Bones."

"It was absolutely no problem, Parker." She said with a smile.

The boy lifted his bag onto his back and handed over a folded piece of paper to Brennan as he walked out of the room.

"What is that?" Booth asked, nodding toward the paper, the little boy in his arms giggled and rested his head on his daddy's shoulder.

Brennan opened the paper and smiled, turning it around so that Booth could see it.

On the paper, there was a square, each corner, there was a point, and next to each point, he had written a name. 'Bones', 'Dad', 'Ben', and 'Me'. In the center, it said. 'My Family.' Booth smiled and folded the paper up carefully. He leaned forward and dropped a kiss on Brennan's lips.

"Can't argue with that."


	6. Chutes And Ladders

Chutes and Ladders

Booth had no idea how he had gotten into this predicament. Well, that's not entirely true, he knew exactly how he had gotten into this predicament, he just wasn't entirely sure how he was going to get out. The sounds outside of his enclosure were loud, screaming and pounding above his head made him thankful for the sturdiness of the plastic he was encased in.

Sniper, war hero, veteran, FBI agent, he had seen it all. He had experienced it all. The pounding above his head was louder, and the streaks of moving legs below him made him want to shout for help. He knew he couldn't ask for help, he knew that it was just a sign of weakness. However, he also knew that he couldn't hide here for long.

He tried to move his hand to his waist, twisting himself as hard as he could, his shoulder wrenched and he let out a grunt of pain. The sounds around him were almost deafening. Loud, raucous music, screaming, screeching, giggling balls of energy bounding around. He closed his eyes and tried to plan his move.

"Daddy?" A voice echoed through the hollow tube and Booth opened his eyes to a familiar face. "Are you stuck in the slide?" Benjamin asked, his eyebrows lifted in that exaggerated surprised expression that he had perfected.

"No." Booth said.

"Then why don't you slide down?"

"Because I don't want to." Booth said, knowing immediately that his comment sounded horribly childish. He could tell by the furrow of his son's eyebrows that it was probably the wrong thing to say.

"Daddy, there are other kids that want to play in the slide. It's not right for you to…"

"Okay, okay…" Booth interrupted him. "I'm stuck."

Benji's mouth opened wide as he slapped his hand over it and tried not to laugh, but the giggle could not be contained.

"Hey! It's not nice to laugh!" Booth exclaimed, which only sent his son into another casacade of giggles.

"Mister, are you ever going to slide down?" A little girl asked from the top of the slide.

"I'm almost…. I… No." Booth growled, hearing the little girl skitter away. "Benji." Booth said.

"Do you want me to get mommy?" He asked.

"No!" Booth exclaimed, trying to reach for his son before he took off. "No, no… don't get mommy."

"I can go get her, daddy…" He shrugged.

"No, it's… daddy will figure out how to get out… the loop on my jeans got stuck on one of the little bolts in here…"

"I don't know what that means." Benji said, shaking his head.

"You're about as useful as… nevermind." Booth sighed. He struggled a little more, trying to free himself, hearing the sound of the games in the distance, the sound of the children playing and laughing around him on the jungle gym.

"Are you going to live in there, daddy?" Benji asked.

"Ben…" Booth growled.

"What?" He shrugged, leaning into the tube slide, he watched his father curiously. "Mommy is going to figure out you're missing. Do you want me to bring you something to eat? I don't want you to starve to death."

"Ben…"

"Mommy told you the slide was too small, didn't she?"

"The slide isn't too small, Benji. Daddy's jeans got snagged."

"I still don't know what that means." The little boy shook his head. "Let me go find mommy."

"No! Benji, no!" Booth exclaimed, but it was too late, the little boy was already skipping away from the slide in search of his mother. Booth groaned in discontent. He knew that Brennan would never let him live this down, especially after the push he had made to let them to have dinner there in the first place. All of her arguments of 'overstimulation' and the fact that a 'oversized rat doesn't make a very good role model' seemed to be chanting in his ear, and the motto of the establishment… plastered over every wall… 'where a kid can be a kid.' He could already hear her sing song voice in his ear. He struggled a little in his orange plastic tube of embarrassment, and could already hear the loop of his jeans tearing. He tried to get his hand behind him to unhook it again, only cramping himself further, when the light at the end of the tunnel became dim again.

"Hey, Daddy." Ben said with a bright grin. "Mommy is coming to help."

"You didn't have to get mommy, I can handle this myself…"

"I was going to bring you a piece of pizza, but mommy said you won't starve for a few days…"

"Thanks." Booth said, his voice sarcastic as another face popped into view. "Bones, don't you dare say a…"

"Regretting that last slice of pizza?" Brennan asked, a slow smirk rising on her lips.

"The slide is not too small! My belt loop is stuck on one of the bolts." Booth exclaimed.

"I do believe that going down the slide head first, is against the rules…" She said, shaking her head in disappointment. She then turned her head and looked away at the small sign just out of view. "Playground for children between five and twelve years old only…" She said, looking up the tube slide again, shaking her head.

"Bones, please… will you just help me out of here?"

"Daddy, are you thirsty? I still have some of my milkshake left."

"No, Benji, I'm not thirsty! I am upside down!" He exclaimed, trying not to get upset.

"Hey, there is no reason to act all mercurial. He was offering you a beverage…" She replied.

"Sorry for yelling, Benji. Bones, will you please just help me out of here?" He asked, feeling a bit of panic, the longer he sat there upside down, the more anxiety he was feeling. "It's really starting to make me claustrophobic."

Brennan nodded and moved away from the end of the slide, and Booth knew that she hadn't abandoned him, but couldn't think of how she'd be able to help him out. Benji then appeared at the end of the slide again. "Where'd your mother go?"

Ben looked up and then back to his father. "She's climbing up the ladder behind you." He said, looking back into the slide. "You really should be more careful, Daddy."

"I appreciate your concern, Ben. I do." Booth nodded, feeling his belt loop tearing. "Buddy… you may want to move…" Booth said, feeling Brennan behind him, pulling at his leg.

"Bones, this isn't going to work…"

"You have to try to back yourself out." Brennan said.

He tried to push himself with his hands, but the momentum was too great. He let his hands loose, and heard the tear again. "Oh Shi…." Booth exclaimed as he heard the rest of the belt loop tear, and he came hurtling down the slide. Ben moved out of the way just as his father landed on his chest and stomach right in front of him. He rolled over onto his back in pain. Children began to crowd around the man who had been stuck in the tunnel, his son standing closest to him.

"Daddy, you swore." Benjamin said, shaking his head. The next person Booth saw above him was the manager, and his wife.

"Sir, we're going to have to ask you to leave." The manager said, crossing his arms in disappointment.

"Yeah." Booth nodded. "No problem." He said, taking his wife's extended hand, she helped him to his feet.

"Chuck E. Cheese's… where my dad can be a kid!" Benji exclaimed happily as they headed toward the exit, with Booth's hand strategically placed over the tear in his jeans, he kept his head low as they exited the restaurant.


	7. Sorry!

Sorry!

Brennan walked through the quiet house on her nightly routine of checking the windows and doors. It wasn't any way an obsessive thing, but more of the knowledge of what dangers did lurk in the shadows at times. Her feet padded across the wooden floor, her socks reducing the sound of her feet, but the friendly creaks of the planks beneath her, made her feel warm and cozy.

She always found it difficult to sleep when Booth wasn't home, her thoughts and worries bubbling from her stomach to her chest always made her feel uneasy. It wasn't often that Booth was sent on an assignment without her, but when it did occur, she always made sure that she was on high alert. High alert meant that sleep was not on the agenda, so she moved down the hallway toward Benjamin's room to check on him. She slowly opened the door, the wedge of light from the hallway rolled across the far wall of the room, and her eyes focused on the boy lying in the bed. His eyes were closed tightly, his arm wrapped around his favorite stuffed dog. She sighed when she saw what was clenched in his fist, a lump forming in her throat as she walked across the room and crouched at his bedside.

She carefully looped her fingers in his hand, and reluctantly, the sleeping child released the object. His blue eyes fluttered open, and his brow furrowed. "Is daddy home?" He asked, gripping the object again.

"Sweetheart, I told you… daddy is working…"

"He missed my fall play." The little boy said, pulling the orange foam costume in his hand closer to him.

"I know he missed your play, and he said he would try very hard to get to it, but his work is very important."

"Aren't I important?" Benjamin asked. His lip protruded for a moment, and he sniffled.

"You are the most important to daddy."

"Then why did he miss my play?" Benjamin sighed.

"Benji." Brennan whispered.

"Lauren's daddy was there, Jorge's daddy was there… my daddy wasn't there." He said, his pout turning into a glare.

"Your mommy was there." She replied.

"So?"

"And your Aunt Angela, and Uncle Jack…"

"I wanted daddy to be there."

Brennan didn't know what else to say to him, and though she understood the reasoning for Booth's absence, she couldn't help but feel anger toward him for making their son feel this way. She slowly ran her fingertips over his forehead, watching her son's eyes flutter a little as he fought a tear. He rolled to his back and stared stubbornly at the ceiling. She had no idea how to explain to her son the sacrifices that his father has made, or the lives he has saved. She had no idea how to make him feel better. "Hey…" She whispered, her son looked to her eyes, his expression hollow with sadness. "You know that your daddy loves you, right?"

Ben shrugged.

"I'm sure he feels bad that he couldn't be there to see you, baby… That's all he talked about at work, you know… his little squash…"

The light on the wall became a little brighter, as the door opened a little more. She turned to see her husband's silhouette back lit by the dim hallway light. She could tell by his stance that he had a heavy weight on his shoulders. She looked to Benji, and he rolled away from his father, taking the costume in his hands with him, he pushed it down and rolled his leg on top of it.

Brennan stood up and walked toward him, his eyes on her as she looked up at him. He could see that she didn't hold it against him, she was simply disappointed in the situation. "I'm sorry." He whispered, swallowing the sadness that was creating the lump in his throat.

"Did you catch the suspects?"

His brow furrowed and he tilted his head. "Of course we did."

"Then don't apologize to me, apologize to him." She said, nodding toward Benjamin. She leaned up and kissed his cheek as she moved past him.

Booth stood in the doorway for a moment, not sure what to say to the little boy. He was well versed in missing things in Parker's life, especially when he was a young boy. And though his oldest son always understood and remained mature about it all, Booth knew that it had hurt him. He knew from personal experience what it was like to have a parent that missed important moments in his life. However, he always pushed back those feelings, but they always reared their ugly head when it came to his own children. "Benji?" Booth said, approaching the bed, he knelt down to the bed level and watched his son move farther away from him. "Hey, little Boo." He said, using the nickname that Brennan had given him when he was just an infant. "I know you're mad at me… and I'm really sorry." He whispered. "I'm sorry I missed your play."

"It's fine." Benji mumbled at the wall.

"It's not fine, it's not okay… and I'm sorry."

"Mommy was there." Ben pouted.

"Good." Booth smiled, though he knew that the boy's intention was actually to make him jealous.

"And Aunt Angela, Uncle Jack."

"So they got to see you play a gourd, huh?"

"Squash." Ben said, rolling over to his side, he glared at his father, gritting his teeth. "I was a squash."

"Isn't it the same thing?" Booth asked.

"No… I don't know."

"So I can't call you gourd-o?"

"No."

"So… what did you do as a squash?" Booth asked. "Squash things?"

"No." Ben pouted. "You know what I was supposed to do at the play, daddy. I was practicing all week."

"Well, your daddy is getting forgetful in his old age…" Booth shrugged.

Ben sighed. "I was supposed to say a poem about squashes, and then we did a dance, and stuff… and things." He trailed off.

"What was the poem about squashes?" Booth asked.

"Daddy, you know!" He said, trying to roll over.

"Well I want to remember." Booth said, setting his hand on his son's arm. "Please?"

Ben sighed, he stared at the ceiling and mumbled. "Squash is good, squash is…"

"No, no…" Booth said, shaking his head. "I want to be able to remember it…" He said, reaching over to touch the costume in the boy's arms. "Can you put this on and recite it?" He asked. "I bet I'll remember it if you wear that."

"Daddy, its bedtime." He sighed.

"But I feel awful for missing your play, and I didn't even get to see you in your squash suit."

"It's a costume." He said, a disapproving look directed at his father wavered just for a moment when he saw his father's smile.

"Could you put on your costume and recite the poem?"

"Mommy used the camera for it, you can watch it with her."

"I don't want to watch it on silly video, I want to watch it in person."

Benji sighed, he shook his head and grabbed his costume, climbing from the bed. He pouted as he unzipped the big yellow foam squash costume, and pulled it onto himself. "I don't have the whole costume…"

"That's fine." Booth said, "I'll use my imagination." He said, sitting on the floor next to the bed. "Alright, squashbuckler… ready?"

The sideways grin on Ben's face suddenly, showed his amusement at his father's horrible pun. He sighed, trying to look bored as he closed his eyes for a moment, trying to remember the poem. He opened his eyes and smiled. "Squash is good, squash is sweet… squash is yummy, yum to eat." He said, pausing for a moment. "Then we did a little dance…"

"Okay." Booth said, nodding.

Ben stopped and furrowed his brow.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't… "

"You don't want to dance alone, right?" Booth asked, standing up, he took his son's hand and Ben let out a giggle.

"No!" Ben laughed.

"Come on, boogie down, Sasquash…" Booth said as Ben danced and giggled.

"What on earth is going on in here?" Brennan's voice from the doorway made Ben jump. She was obviously joking, but Booth played along and grabbed Ben and picked him up, turning toward the open door.

"Nothing." The two boys exclaimed, looking around the room as if someone else were causing the commotion.

"Alright… keep it down in here…" She said in a faux angry tone, as the two boys laughed. "Rebel is trying to sleep out here…"

"Sorry, Rebel!" Ben exclaimed. He covered his mouth with his hand and giggled.

Brennan smiled at her two boys and took a step back, sliding quietly back into the hallway.

Booth looked to his son and sighed, a smile fading from his face. "I really am sorry that I missed your play, little Boo."

"It's okay, daddy." Ben said, raising his arms, he wrapped them around his daddy tightly. Booth hugged him back. "Mommy says you'll make it up to me by bringing my class juice and snacks on snack day this week." He mumbled, hearing the low rumbling of his father's laugh, he pulled from the hug and smiled. "She said you'd be sorry." He smiled, and hugged him once again.


	8. Battleship

Battleship

The way the morning sun was beating through the curtains, it was clear that it was going to be another hot day. Booth shifted in bed, his arm moving to the other side of the sheets, and he frowned at the cool temperature. It had been three days that Brennan had been at a lecture for some bones found in some country that Booth couldn't pronounce, and he knew that there was another two days before she'd return. He rolled onto his back, sighing as he closed his eyes.

He heard a toilet flush.

Booth didn't think anything of it, his son was potty trained, and very often he'd go into the bathroom, do this thing, and then make his way down the hallway to his parents room. Booth closed his eyes and sighed, waiting for Benjamin to come running down the hallway, landing precariously on one of his father's sensitive parts that he had seemed to have perfected landing upon. It's no wonder he has no younger siblings. Booth laughed to himself.

The toilet flushed again.

Booth looked up and toward the door. It stood slightly ajar, and he kept his attention on the little bit of hallway he could see from there. "Ben?" Booth called. "Benji?"

No answer, just the sound of the flushing toilet again.

"Benjamin." Booth called, rolling from the bed, he pulled the blankets back onto the mattress and padded to the door, opening the door slightly, he looked down the hallway. "Benji?" He called.

No answer.

"Benjamin." Booth called again.

Toilet flushed again.

Booth walked quickly down the hallway to the guest bathroom, Ben's bathroom, and immediately knew something was wrong. A stream of water was flowing from under the door onto the hardwood floor in the hall. Booth pulled at the doorknob and swung the door opened.

Ben jumped back from the toilet, his mouth agape as his father surveyed the disaster area. "Oops." Ben said, unsure of what to say at this point.

"Benjamin Matthew Booth!" he exclaimed, looking around at the water flowing from the toilet. Overflowing and continuing to run down the side of the toilet, the entire room was filled with water. "What are you doing?" Booth asked, grabbing the boy from the ground, he instantly regretted it. Cold and soaked, the boy let out a screech. He knew he was in trouble, but Booth had no idea what to do. "Why can't you do these kinds of things when your mother is around?" He asked, swinging Ben back and forth as the boy tried to get from his father's arm. Water dripped from his little feet and Booth looked down into the toilet as he reached for a towel hanging from the towel rack. "Do you have any idea how bad this is?" He asked, seeing something sticking out from the drain of the toilet, Booth needed to take care of his son before he took care of the toilet.

He hurried down the hallway with Ben in his arms, slipping on the water as he moved. "I'm sorry, Daddy!" Ben exclaimed again and again, chanting this over and over as he tried to get his dad to put him down. "I'm sorry!"

"Not as sorry as you're going to be when your mom gets home." Booth said, his empty threat obvious by the tone in his voice. He set his son down on the floor outside of his bedroom, grabbed a towel from the linen closet in the hallway, and wrapped him up tightly. "There, all set." Booth said, "Now, get in your room, and change… don't touch anything else." Booth said, sending the pouting boy into his bedroom, Booth then ran toward the bathroom.

Ben went into his room and changed, listening to the sound of his father's grunts of irritation, and the sound of water sloshing, and towels being tossed from the room. He tiptoed down the hallway when he heard the sound of porcelain being slammed together. Booth's voice grunted unintelligible words of irritation and a yelp of pain at one point.

"Daddy?" Ben called from the hallway.

"Bedroom, Benjamin." Booth called.

"But, Daddy." He said, turning to see his mother walking slowly up the stairs. He wanted to run to her, but was more concerned about his father's predicament. Brennan put her finger over her lip to keep Benji from giving her away.

"No but…" He said, swinging the door open to scold the boy, he came face to face with Brennan. "Bones." He said, glancing to the boy.

"Mommy is home." Ben smiled slyly.

"What is going on in there?" She asked, noting the floor was still wet, and though Booth stealthily tried to block the doorway, she could see that the toilet was in pieces on the floor. "Booth?"

Booth then turned, picking up something from the counter and deposited it in her hand. The plastic toy boat was still intact, if but a little squished from being shoved into the pipe of the toilet by Ben. "He sank my battleship." Booth said, catching her confused expression as he leaned in and kissed her cheek. "I missed you." He said, and turned around and continued his task of cleaning up the mess in the bathroom.


	9. Operation

Operation

The wait wasn't too stressful or long, and the doctors had assured Brennan that all would be well, and that he'd make a full recovery. She sat in the small couch in the hospital room, her son nestled on her lap as they looked long and hard at the book in front of them. The object of the puzzle book was to find specific objects that were hidden within the carefully jumbled mess on the page. Their current object was a marble.

Brennan looked up at the bed for perhaps the hundredth time, she'd assume, thinking for a moment that she heard him move, or make a sound. He was still, and quiet as ever, and that worried her. She had told him that morning when he complained of a stomachache, that perhaps he shouldn't have had the leftover burrito that was in the refrigerator the night before. He naturally rolled her eyes, and consumed it anyway. They took their separate cars to work, and she dropped Ben off at the Jeffersonian's daycare without a second thought.

Her morning had been quiet, and though they often got caught up in their work, it was rare for her not to get a lunchtime phone call.

She had just been reaching for her phone as she got her things ready, when it rang. She jumped at the sudden noise, but grabbed the receiver.

Booth was in the hospital.

His appendix had burst.

Her first response had been shock, which quickly reared into panic.

She gathered her things as quickly as she could, and took the stairs to her car in the garage. The moment she opened her door, her stomach was twisted in knots.

Ben.

She had to get her son from daycare. Angela and Hodgins were on vacation, and she remembered that Cam had left early to go to a doctor appointment. As quickly as she could, she took off for the stairs again. She was in a literal sprint by the time she reached the daycare, signing Benjamin out, she ran for the car again, holding onto him tightly.

"Where are we going so fast, Mommy?" Ben had asked.

"We have to go to the hospital."

"Why? Are you hurt?"

"Mommy isn't hurt, no." She said softly.

"Then who is hurt? Why are we running?" He asked, as she quickly secured him in his car seat.

"Daddy."

Ben didn't take very kindly to the news of his father's impending surgical procedure, and Brennan wasn't taking it as well as she thought, when she sped through a red light on her way to the hospital, and was pulled over. She explained that she wasn't thinking very logically, and was able to get through it with just a simple warning.

The pause in her thinking made her calm considerably, as she realized her focus was jumbled with the lists of complications that could occur. She wasn't sure what shape he had been in when he was brought into the hospital, and she had no idea of what his current status was. These thoughts, combined with the panicking almost four year old in the back seat, were forcing her closer to breaking down.

Her relief was brought once she had gotten into the hospital and learned of his status, when they told her that Booth was incredibly lucky. The intense stomach pains had brought him to the hospital, and when it was determined that it was his appendix, he was scheduled for surgery immediately. His appendix had burst, apparently right in the hand of the surgeon, and they had taken all of the necessary precautions to ensure that he would make a full recovery.

That was several hours earlier, and since then she had calmed down considerably. The recovery room they had brought him into allotted for some comforts. The couch was a little bumpy, and the coffee they had brought her was lukewarm, but she wasn't going to complain.

She looked up when she thought she heard a sound again, and Ben looked over his book. Booth had turned his head and was watching the two of them sleepily.

"Hey." He said, catching her eyes, she was up in less than a second, moving toward his bed while holding Ben in her arms.

"You're awake." She said, and thinking to herself that it was a stupid thing to say. She didn't care, she was just glad he was awake.

"Yeah." He whispered. "What happened?" He asked.

"You don't remember?" She asked.

"I just remember being really, really sick… Charlie took me to the emergency room, and I think I passed out." He whispered, watching his son's wide eyes on him. "Hey bud."

"Good." Ben sighed. "You're not dead."

Booth's eyebrows knitted, and he tilted his head. "Nope, not dead." Then he looked to Brennan again. "So what was wrong?"

"It was your appendix." She whispered.

"Ah…" He nodded.

"And while they were down there, I told them to give you a vasectomy." She said, her voice in a low tone, her eyes serious.

"What?" He yelped, wincing as he looked up at her, he could see the laughter in her eyes suddenly. "Very funny, Bones… very funny."

"What's that?" Benjamin asked. He turned his head and saw his mother was laughing, which was so much better than the tension in her smile just moments before. "Mommy, what's a fasec-emmy?" He asked, which only sent his mother into more laughter.

"See what you started here?" Booth said from the bed. "See that, Bones?"

"You want another one?" She asked, shifting Benjamin, she wiped the tear from her eye, she watched his eyes dart from hers. "Booth?" She said, her laughter fading quickly. "Booth!" She exclaimed, and let out a laugh. He turned his head, and reached his hand up to clasp his little boy's hand in his.

"We should keep trying until we get a girl." He said, and simply closed his eyes and smiled.


	10. Cootie

Cootie

Brennan's shoes clacked against the lab's floor, and Ben tried to keep up, his sneakers squeaking as fast as his legs would allow him to walk. He was practically running once his mother came in sight of her intended goal, and her hand gripped his tightly.

"Mommy…" Ben sighed.

"No, we're going to have a talk with Uncle Jack, and he's going to be serious and tell you the truth." She said to her five year old son.

"He did tell me the truth." Ben insisted.

She rounded the corner, and Jack Hodgins looked up from his desk. "Doctor B." He said, a smile on his face, and he looked to Benji. "Little B… And to what do I owe the pleasure on a Saturday afternoon visit."

"Angela said you'd be here."

"Yeah, just finishing up some samples for the Morris case, before I…"

"Jack." Brennan said seriously. "Please tell Benjamin the truth about…" She looked to her son, and the boy grinned.

"Cooties!" He exclaimed.

Hodgins let out a belly laugh, but straightened as soon as he saw the death stare directed toward him. "What?" Hodgins asked. "Cooties exist." He glanced to the microscope in the corner, and back to Brennan.

"Uncle Jack showed me, mama." Ben insisted, pointing to the microscope.

Brennan crossed her arms over her chest, lifted an eyebrow. "What?" Hodgins said innocently.

"You started this. Now he won't hug me, he won't give me a kiss on the cheek… He won't even let me help him change his clothes in the morning."

"That's because girls have cooties, Mama! And you are a girl." Ben exclaimed, shaking his head, he walked toward the microscope. "Uncle Jack, show her."

Hodgins looked between Ben and Brennan, and cringed a little at the stare that Brennan was giving him. "Yes, Doctor Hodgins… why don't you show me." She said, following her son across the office, Ben put his hands up on the table and stood on his tip toes.

"That microscope, mama… that's where the cooties are…" Ben said, looking back to Jack. Hodgins held a serious look on his face, and stood, following the two of them toward the microscope.

"Doctor Brennan, you know that I was just…" Hodgins said, nodding toward the microscope, she gave him a pointed look, and he sighed as she flicked on the switch.

She stared in at the tiny beetle that Hodgins had set up under the microscope, and focused it carefully. She then looked up at Hodgins and raised an eyebrow.

"I was just joking around." He shrugged. He looked to Ben, and the boy was hopping to see if he could see into the microscope.

"You think that's funny." She stated, nodding her head.

"Come on, Doctor B. You went to public school, didn't you ever hear of cooties before?"

"I… know that they don't exist, Doctor Hodgins…that it is a device to focus derision of the opposite sex based upon a figment of a child's imagination. You understand that, correct?" She asked, eying him carefully.

Hodgins chuckled, shaking his head. "Doctor B."

"You are going to fix this, Doctor Hodgins…" She said, taking a step backwards. "I have some things to do in my office… I will be back in twenty minutes to pick him up."

"Doctor B, I was just…"

"Thank you." She said, taking a step back, she looked to Ben. "Benji, Uncle Jack wants to have a little talk with you. Mommy will be right back."

"Okay." Ben said, still hopping at the table, Brennan turned and walked out of the office.

Hodgins stood for a moment, watching the little boy hopping at the table, and smirked to himself. He let out a soft chuckle and glanced to the doorway and then back to Ben. "Little B?" Hodgins said softly. Ben turned and looked to his 'uncle' with a smile. "Come here for a second…" He said, nodding toward the chair near his desk.

Ben took a glance to the microscope, and then back to Hodgins, and then ran toward him happily. "I want to see the cooties, Uncle Jack."

"Yeah, we should probably talk about the whole 'cootie' thing." Hodgins said, patting the chair next to him, Ben climbed in and looked at him very seriously. Ben's attention was on Jack completely, his blue eyes focused directly on him. "Maybe we should tone it down a little."

"I don't know what that means." Ben replied seriously.

"Well, I may have embellished the seriousness of a cootie infestation." Hodgins said, watching Ben nod. "Maybe 'all' girls don't have them."

"I don't understand." Ben shook his head.

"Well… for one thing, you're not supposed to go around telling people they have cooties." Hodgins said. Ben's eyebrow lifted very slowly. He was looking more and more like his mother in that moment. The playfulness having faded slightly. "It's kind of like a secret."

"You don't want them to know they have cooties?" Ben asked, his eyes widening in surprise.

"Well, it's more like… we don't want them to know that we know that they have cooties."

"Oh!" Ben nodded, unsure that he actually understood.

"Basically… it is a secret boy thing… you know?" Hodgins said, keeping his voice low. He knew for a fact that Brennan could very well be listening in on their conversation.

"So only boys are supposed to know."

"Right." Hodgins nodded.

"That girls have cooties."

"Some girls do…" Hodgins shrugged.

"But how do I know what girls have them?" Ben asked. This whole ordeal was becoming more than he had bargained for, and Jack's explanation was not helping matters.

"You'll know. Sometimes moms just don't want their kids to worry about things like that." Hodgins nodded. "It's kind of like when she comes into your room, to tell you that there is no monster in your closet… but you know that he's actually in there… She's just trying to make you feel better. But your mom… she doesn't have cooties anyway."

"She doesn't…?" Ben asked, unsure and a little worried that Jack would give him the answer he didn't want.

"Nah, she's good…" Hodgins nodded. "And… its probably best we don't discuss this with her anymore… as far as we're concerned, there's no such thing as cooties…"

"Right." Ben nodded. "No such thing."

"Awesome." Hodgins said, glancing to the doorway. "Why don't we go find your mom?"

"Okay." Ben said, sliding out of the chair. He took Jack's hand, and the two of them walked together toward Brennan's office. She looked up from her desk as they stepped in the doorway, and Ben ran toward his mother.

She turned in his chair and accepted his hug, glancing to Jack. "I'm sorry I said you had cooties, Mommy." He said, giving her a kiss on the cheek, he glanced back to Hodgins.

"And we understand now, that they don't really exist, right?" Brennan asked, glancing to Jack, and then to Ben.

"Um, yeah." He nodded. "No more cooties." Ben replied, glancing to Jack.

Jack winked and took a step back, smiling at mother and son for a moment. He waved to Brennan and walked toward his office. He was just stepping inside when he heard Brennan call for him. He turned his head, and could see that she wasn't very pleased.

"Really, Hodgins? A monster in his closet?" She exclaimed, as she saw him quickly retreat into his office, hoping to find a secret escape hatch that hadn't been found yet.


	11. Pictionary

Pictionary

Booth stepped up to the little table set up in the preschool for picture pick up. He held his son's hand in his and smiled politely to the bleached blonde older woman sitting behind the table. She gave him a flirting smile back, and he glanced to Ben just to avoid eye contact for a moment. "What's the last name?" She asked.

"Booth." He replied, nodding slowly.

"Benjamin Booth." Benji said, leaning on the table, he smiled at the woman as she looked through the folders of school pictures. She pulled the folder out and smiled at Booth, handing over the envelope of pictures.

"Alright, bud." Booth said, rubbing his son's head, the boy smiled up at his father and walked alongside him down the hallway. Booth took a few steps, unable to contain his enthusiasm for the new school pictures, he slowly unfolded the envelope, and pulled out the large folder of pictures. "I bet you're looking pretty handsome in these…" Booth said, his eyes widening at the first picture. He stopped.

"What?" Ben asked, looking up at his dad, he could see that he looked slightly distressed. "Come on, Daddy… mommy is waiting…"

"Benjamin." Booth said, shaking his head as he flipped through the pictures. "Ben, Ben… Your mom is going to …"

"What?" Ben asked, scrunching his eyebrows, he hopped to look at the pictures. "Let me see…"

"Benji… Benji, what were you thinking?" He asked, showing the picture to his son, the boy had stuck his two front teeth out in a funny face.

"What?" Ben asked. "That's me."

"Yeah, that's you… that's you alright." Booth said, looking at the other funny faces Ben had made in the other pictures. "Your mother is going to kill you." He said as he grabbed his son's hand and rushed him through the hallway.

"What? What? Why? Why, daddy?" Ben asked, getting upset by his father's refusal to talk about it, he skipped alongside him as he tried to keep up. "Daddy? Mommy is going to be mad?" He asked.

"I don't think we should show them to her." Booth said, pushing open the door to the school, he moved down the sidewalk and started to pocket the pictures.

"What? Why?" Ben asked, pulling at his father's hand.

"Why? Because in this picture, you're picking your nose…" He said, pulling the envelope open, he showed him another picture.

"No, Daddy… I'm pretending to pick my nose… "

"Oh, oh, you're pretending…" Booth nodded, sarcasm dripping from his voice. "Then that's okay… " He said, flipping to the next picture. "Ben!" He exclaimed. He looked down, and Ben had been startled, looking up at his father with a frightened expression. "Nevermind." He said, realizing he had scared the poor kid. He pocketed the pictures and continued walking toward the SUV. He walked toward the car, and got Ben in his seat, not saying another word about the pictures. He got into the car, and drove them toward the lab. Pulling up to the rear of the building, he could already see Brennan waiting for him, her bag on her shoulder as she put her phone in her pocket and smiled. Ben waved from the back seat, and she waved back.

She walked to the SUV, and opened the back door to put her bag inside, leaning over to give her son a kiss. "Hey there my favorite little person."

"Hi, Mommy." Ben smiled sweetly.

"Did you have a good day at school?" She asked, leaning back, the little boy nodded his head and grinned.

"Good." She said, closing the back door. She climbed into the front seat and leaned over to kiss Booth. "I managed to get the remains for the Leone case cleaned and analyzed. We should have some answers tomorrow with the evidence from the scene. I was going to have Angela do a reconstruction of the skull and get a positive ID, since it just seemed to be a little weird that there was a broken bone that had obviously been treated, but wasn't on any of the records. There are a couple other inconsistencies that don't sit well with me." She said, looking out the window as Booth drove. "Are you listening?"

"Yep… Leone construction is putting out a record…" Booth muttered, knowing exactly what she had said, he smiled at her irritated glare. "I heard what you said, Bones." He chuckled.

"Good, because sometimes I think that all you hear is static when I speak." She said with a bit of humor in her voice. There was a slight pause in the conversation, and Booth drove in silence, and just as he thought that the topic wouldn't come up, it did. "Wasn't today the day that you were supposed to pick up Ben's pictures?"

"No." Booth lied through his teeth, and the cocked eyebrow in his direction was a clear indication that it wasn't going to get very far.

"Daddy, you're lying." Ben said from the back seat.

"Thank you, Ben. Thanks for having my back." Booth nodded.

"Where are the pictures?" She asked.

"They didn't come out very well…" Booth nodded. "Very blurry… I told them we didn't want them." He said.

"They're in his pocket, Mommy." Ben said.

"Thank you, Benjamin." Brennan said, holding her hand out. "Hand them over." 

"You don't want to see them, Bones." 

"How bad can they be? Our son is a beautiful child." She said, winking back at the grinning boy.

"Bones, I'm serious… You don't want to see them. We can have his pictures done professionally… with us present, would probably be best…"

Her fingers wiggled as she held her palm out.

Booth sighed, reached into his jacket and pulled out the pictures. He slapped them down in Brennan's hand. "Thank you." She replied.

He continued driving and tried not to pay attention to her reaction, but the longer she was quiet as she flipped through the pictures, the more he wondered what her reaction would be. On her third time through the pile of pictures, she turned her head away, placing them in her lap.

"What?" Booth asked. She turned her head to face him, and he could see the laugh beneath the surface. "What?" Booth asked, a grin now on his face.

"Benji, what is this?" She asked, holding up a picture from the pile in her hands.

The little boy laughed, wiggling his fingers. "Dancing Phalanges!" He laughed.

His answer sent both of his parents into a cascade of laughter. "I think this one is going right on my desk." Brennan laughed, shaking her head at the two boys as they made their way home.


	12. Outburst

_**Outburst**_

Booth buckled his son into the seat after picking him up from preschool, and immediately noticed his dark mood. He tried to tread lightly, but there was only so much you could do with a moody four year old. "Where is Mommy?" He asked, a scowl twisting his face.

"Mommy had to take a trip, you know that. She's off doing some fun stuff with her newest book." Booth replied.

"No." He said, sighing. "Where is Mommy."

"St. Louis."

"I want her here." Ben glared.

"Well, unless here… is St. Louis… no Mommy." Booth said, shrugging his shoulders, he took a step back and closed the door. When he opened the door to the driver's side, he was the direct recipient to his son's angry stare down. "Hey, you can have fun with Daddy."

"I don't WANT to have fun with Daddy. I WANT Mommy!" Ben exclaimed.

"That's enough." Booth said sternly, turning the car on, he drove them toward the diner. He kept looking back at Benjamin, and the icy stare he received in return unnerved him. "What is wrong with you today?" Booth asked.

The only response was another glare. Booth pulled into a parking space near the diner, and turned the car off. "I don't want to eat here." Ben grumbled.

"Why not?" Booth looked at his son's pouty face.

"I want Mommy."

"Benjamin." Booth replied, his fuse burning shorter and shorter with each second.

"No." Ben replied.

"Come on, we're going to the diner. Daddy had a long, boring day at work… and all he really wants right now is to eat food that isn't good for him, and have a little boy that is well behaved."

"I will stay here." Ben replied.

"You will not stay here." Booth said, climbing out of the driver's seat, he already knew that this was a big mistake.

It wasn't his first rodeo.

And that was exactly what Ben intended on making it into. As soon as Booth unbuckled the boy, his hips swung up, and his hand twisted and slapped his father in the face. Ben let out a screeching yell, and Booth slammed his head into the top of the car as he struggled with the child. "Stop… Ben, stop!" Booth said as the boy rolled like an alligator with a mouthful of prey.

"NO!" Ben screeched. "NO! Let GO! Let GO!" He screamed as he reached for the handle on the other side of the SUV.

"Oh, don't you even think about it!" Booth exclaimed as Ben lunged for the door and grabbed hold of the handle. Luckily, the child lock was in place and instead of the door opening, Ben flew into the closed window. He let out a pain filled shout as his head slammed into the window, and he fell back in a fit of screams and cries. Booth reached for the boy, and pulled at him, trying to either get him out of the car, or back in his seat, and ended up with nothing but the boy's shirt in his hands.

Ben leapt into the front seat.

"Ben! Don't you…"

Ben read his father's thoughts as he leaned down on the horn of the SUV with all of his weight, hugging the steering wheel.

People were looking as the father slammed the door of the car, and Ben ceremoniously slammed his hand down on the automatic lock. "Funny, Benjamin!" Booth exclaimed. "Really funny!" Booth exclaimed as he reached in his pocket to get his keys.

Nothing.

"Oh…. God, please no…" Booth said as he pressed his face against the window. Sure enough, his keys were on the floor under Benji's seat. "Benjamin! Open the door now!"

"Let me talk to my Mommy!" Ben exclaimed, pushing down on the horn.

"No! Open the door! Open the door now!" Booth exclaimed.

"Mom! MEE MOM! MEE! MOM! MEE!" He screamed, slamming his hands down on the horn with every exclamation. Booth bowed his head in defeat as he tried not to look anyone passing by in the eye. "Bring me to Mommy!" He exclaimed.

"I don't negotiate with preschoolers!" Booth exclaimed.

"If you don't get Mommy, I am going to scream kidnap out the window!" Ben shouted.

"This. Is. Not. Funny, Benjamin!" Booth shouted as he walked around the back of the SUV. He watched his son the entire way as he ducked behind the tailgate. He waited for nearly two minutes, and he heard the door open.

"Daddy?" Benji's voice was soft, sing songy. "Dad-dy…?" He said. Booth carefully climbed to the side of the SUV, carefully because he was now in the road, and peeked into the car. Ben was hanging out of the driver side door, looking to the back of the SUV. "Daddy?"

Quickly, Booth ran around the front of the SUV. Ben was surprised by his father's appearance and gasped, knowing full well that he was in trouble. He grabbed the handle and tried to pull the door closed, just as Booth stuck his hand in the way.

The door slammed on Booth's fingers, and he felt the sharp pain shooting across all four fingers of his hand. Ben gasped, his eyes widening as he took a full, head on leap into the back seat. Booth held his breath, a swear or two hidden deep in his chest as he grabbed hold of his hand.

"I'm sorry, Daddy! I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Daddy!" Benji exclaimed from the back seat, scrambling into the farthest back corner of the SUV. Booth climbed back in and tried to control his breathing as he stared at his fingers for a moment. "Daddy! Please! Daddy!" Benjamin started to cry.

Booth just breathed deeply until the pain in his fingers subsided a bit. He held his hand and listened to his son sob in the back seat. After a good ten minutes, the little boy sniffled and stopped crying. His father's silence was unnerving to him, and he knew that he had been a very, very naughty boy. He crawled into the passenger seat after a few more moments, and glanced to his father. "Daddy?" He swallowed hard. "Are you okay?"

Booth turned to face his son, the little boy's head tilted and his eyebrows lifted innocently. He shook his head at the boy's innocent expression, and his eyes explored his father's for a moment. "I want my mommy." Booth said, looking down at his swollen fingers, he closed his eyes and tipped his head back, for just a moment of serenity.


	13. Fact Or Crap

_**Fact or Crap**_

Booth sat at his desk quietly typing with one hand. His other hand was resting on his lap. He saw movement at his door and smiled when he saw his wife approaching the door. It had been a long week without her, but Brennan had called nearly every night to check in on her 'boys'. Everything had seemed fairly normal about her trip, though this was the longest she had been away from both of them, and she knew as soon as she walked into her husband's office, that something was off.

"Hey, Bones." He smiled, continuing to type with his left hand, he took it one key at a time, but stopped to wave at her.

She stopped just past the door and furrowed her brow. "Hey?"

"Missed you." He smiled, continuing to try to type with one hand. "Just finishing up this… report." He said, slamming his finger into the delete button for times, he continued to type.

She raised an eyebrow.

"Booth? I've been gone for over a week."

"Mmhmm…" He nodded. "I said we missed you." He said. "How was your flight?" He asked, still not looking up.

"What's wrong with your hand?"

"Nothing is wrong with my hand." He said, lifting it from the keyboard, he wiggled his fingers.

"The other one." She replied. "Why are you typing with only one hand?"

"No reason." He shrugged. He knew he wasn't getting away with anything, but postponing the inevitable was just his style. She'd find out sooner or later, but right now, he preferred that it be just a little later. "How was your flight?"

"My flight was just fine." She said, still unsatisfied with the answers that her husband was giving her she started to walk around his desk.

"What?" He asked, noting that she had that suspicious look in her eye.

"Let me see your other hand."

"Let me see both of your hands." He said playfully. His other hand was still beneath the desk. "So, how was your flight?" He asked again.

"Booth." She said, moving alongside him, he turned in his chair, still keeping his hand out of view. "You're keeping something from me, and that makes me very uncomfortable." She said, her voice carrying a tone of concern. "Let me see your other hand."

He slowly pulled his hand from behind his back. He watched her eyes widen in surprise, and her jaw dropped as he held out the braced middle finger. "Are you happy now?"

"Booth! What happened?" She exclaimed.

"Broke my finger." He said, still waving the middle finger around. She reached for his hand. "Hey, easy with that… it still hurts."

"I can see that it's in a brace, how did you break it? Why didn't you tell me?"

"What were you going to do?" He asked, sitting back, he kept his middle finger extended and in full view. "Come home to tend to it. It's just a finger, Bones. It'll heal."

"Yes, but how did you break your finger?" She asked.

"Bear attack." He said, turning around, he continued typing his report with his good hand.

"Booth." She said, her voice irritated.

"What?" He asked. "I was walking in the woods with the boys, and a bear came after us."

"So you fought him off with your finger?"

"No." He said, a smile rising onto his lips. "With my bare hands."

"You did not." She said, immediately understanding his pun. There was no way that Brennan was going to allow him to get away with making a joke about this.

"Come on, Bones… Bare hands!" He said with a laugh. "Don't you get it?"

"I understand that you're trying to make light of a serious issue. I understand that you lied to me while I was away."

"I never lied." Booth said, sitting up, he was suddenly very concerned.

"You said everything was under control while I was away. You kept this from me. Is Benjamin alright? Should I be calling to school to ensure that he's okay?"

"Bones." Booth said, irritation moving into his voice. "Ben is fine."

"How do I know that all of his appendages are accounted for? How do I know that you didn't just lop off one of his toes in a moment of whimsy?" She asked, lifting her eyebrow. She tried to keep a straight face through the whole thing, but was finding it very difficult. "How can I trust you alone with our child if I can't trust you alone with yourself?" She asked. "I think I should call the school." She said, pulling her phone out.

"No." Booth said quickly, pulling himself from the chair. "No, no… no…" He said, moving around the desk, he reached for the phone just as she pressed 'send' and turned. His phone started ringing on his desk. He tried to grab Brennan's phone and grabbed his own phone as he rounded the corner.

"Booth."

"How did you break your finger?" She asked into the line. He put the phone down, and hung up. "You just hung up on me." She said, a faux irritated glare on her face.

"I can't tell you how I broke my finger." He said, taking a step back.

"Why not?"

"Because I promised someone that I wouldn't." He replied, leaning to sit on his desk, he pulled her closer.

"You promised someone you wouldn't tell me how your broke your finger."

"That's right."

"And why wouldn't this person want me to know that they were involved in the breaking of your finger?"

"I refuse to answer that question without my lawyer present." He said with a shake of his head. He pulled her close and she wrapped her arms around him. He hugged her, and buried his face in her neck for a moment and breathed deeply. "I missed you."

"I missed you too." She whispered into him. She pulled from the hug, and just as she was about to step away, she grabbed at the middle finger on his other hand and pulled it back slightly.

"Ow! Ow!" He exclaimed, trying to pull his hand back.

"That doesn't hurt." She replied. "How did you break your finger?"

"I will not incriminate! I will not incriminate." He said, knowing that she wouldn't really bend it back too far, and he could tell that she was just having fun with it. "Bones! Ow! Fine! Fine! I'll tell you!"

She let go of his hand, and he rubbed it and scowled at her. "Alright."

"Bear attack." He said, standing up, he walked around the desk. He sat down in his chair and leaned back. "So, going over to the lab?" He asked, noting that she seemed to be a little thoughtful for a moment.

"Possibly." She nodded. She glanced to the door, and then back at her husband. She leaned over the desk a little and eyed him carefully. "I will figure this out, Seeley Booth."

"I hope…" Booth said, leaning forward, his own sly smile on his lips. "For both of our sakes… that you don't." He said. "Want to kiss my booboo?" He asked, showing her the braced finger, he grinned just a little brighter.

"Take that away from my face… or that won't be your last broken bone." She said sweetly. He dropped his hand onto the desk and she leaned over to kiss him tenderly. "I love you."

"Welcome home." He grinned, kissing her nose, as she stood up and smiled, shaking her head at her husband before she made her way from his office.


	14. Clue

_**Clue**_

Booth and Brennan sat quietly at the diner. Brennan seemed very focused on her lunch, and Booth leaned forward slightly. "You seem pretty hungry."

"Yes." She said, shoveling more food into her mouth, she looked up at him and furrowed her brow. "We are at lunch."

"I thought your stomach was bothering you." He replied, lifting a suspicious eyebrow.

"I'm feeling better now." She said, furrowing her brow.

Booth nodded his head. "You seem to be… not feeling well quite frequently in the morning lately."

"I think I might have a stomach bug." She replied. "Are you going to eat those fries?" She asked, reaching across before she even finished the sentence. He knew it was pointless to deny her, so he watched as she grabbed a handful of his fries and put them on her plate. She put one in her mouth and looked up at him. He was still watching her. "What?"

"Nothing." He said, shrugging his shoulders. "You seem tired…"

"No more than usual." She shrugged, watching as he nodded his head. "Are you okay?"

"Yep… doing just fine." He smiled. "How is your back? Feeling alright? Do you have to go to the bathroom or…"

"Stop." She said, pointing a french fry at him. He looked at her curiously. "I don't know what put this wild idea in your head… but you had better cut it out."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." He said, smiling slyly.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." She glared.

"Nope… no idea at all." He said, looking up at the waitress. She started to walk over.

"Can I get you something?"

"A little bowl of strawberries? Maybe cut up or…"

"Booth, no." Brennan said, glancing to the waitress. "No."

"Why not, Bones?"

"Because just the smell of strawberries makes me…"

"Makes you, what?"

"Excuse me." Brennan said, getting up, she walked quickly toward the bathroom.

Booth sat for a moment, sitting back a little, he seemed quite satisfied with himself for a moment. He looked to the door and saw Angela and Hodgins walking in. He waved them over, and they smiled as they walked toward him. They settled in the seats across from him, and Booth moved Brennan's things to his side of the table. "Where's Bren?" Angela asked.

"Oh, she's in the restroom. I don't think she's feeling well." Booth said, glancing into the back he watched Angela and Hodgins for a moment. "You guys seem unusually happy."

They looked at one another, each smiled just a little. "We have news." Angela said. "But we don't want to say anything until Bren is out here."

Booth looked between the two of them, and glanced behind him when Brennan stepped up behind him and made her way to her seat. "Feeling okay?" Booth asked, a smirk on his lips, Brennan gave him a confused look.

"Why wouldn't I be fine?" She asked. "You're acting very strangely, Booth." Brennan said, smiling at their friends. He scowled and looked to Angela and Hodgins.

"We have news." Angela said softly.

"Shoot." Booth replied.

"We're having a baby." She smiled.

The next moment was filled with happy congratulations, and chattering conversation, as Brennan and Booth congratulated their friends. They had been trying for years to conceive, and finally the moment had come, and both Brennan and Booth were happy for them.

"Benjamin is going to be so excited." Brennan smiled across at her friend. She glanced to Booth, but he was pre-occupied by something else, and didn't respond.

"We are very excited… we wanted to share as soon as we found out." Hodgins said.

Booth was pushed back into the conversation, and smiled. "I know Benji is going to be excited." He said, not catching the glare from Brennan.

They talked for several more minutes, and Booth and Brennan then excused themselves, giving their friends a hug and handshakes on their way out. Together they walked toward the SUV, Booth's eyes on his wife the entire time. Brennan smiled thoughtfully as she climbed into her seat.

"Well, that is exciting." Booth said, noting the thoughtfulness in Brennan's face.

"It certainly is." She smiled, though it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"It's about time we had another baby around." Booth said.

"What?" Brennan asked.

"Benji is almost six years old. It'll be nice to have another baby around." He noticed Brennan was still staring at him. "Angela and Hodgins' baby…"

"Oh." She smiled. "Yes. It'll be very exciting to have another baby around." She said, keeping her eyes on his for a moment, there was a split second of conversation that she started with her eyes, and he wasn't sure if he should finish the sentence. "Time to get me back to the lab." She said softly.

"Right." Booth nodded. "Lunch is over."

"Right." She smiled, and slipped into a comfortable silence, as Booth drove them toward the lab.


	15. Sequence

_**Sequence**_

Bubbles filled the bathtub slowly, rising slowly as the warm water ran into the tub. Brennan watched for another moment and then looked toward the half open door. "Benjamin." She called for the fourth time.

"Coming, Mommy!" Benjamin said from his bedroom for the fourth time.

"Benji, the water in your bath is becoming tepid." She called, watching the door open slowly, she watched her five year old son walk in with just his shorts on, his arms full of bath toys.

"I don't know what that means, Mommy." He said, dumping the toys into the water, sending bubbles into the air. Water splashed Brennan, and she sighed as her son pulled off his shorts and underwear, and stepped into the tub carefully.

"You alright?"

"Uh huh." Benji nodded, settling into the bath, he looked to his mother and smiled. He grabbed one of his boats, and a dinosaur and began to play a little.

"So how was school today?"

Benji shrugged.

"Well, tell me about your day."

"Um…" Ben said as he continued to play. "Daddy dropped me off at school, and I played with Morgan and Henry. Then we had singing time, story time, and before nap time, daddy picked me up from school and took me and Parker to the fair."

"Excuse me?" Brennan asked.

"I mean… nap time, then snack time, then home time!" He grinned brightly.

"Wait, wait…" Brennan said, trying to pretend that she was confused. "So… first was singing time…"

"Uh huh… Then story time…"

"Mmm… then what did you do?"

"Nap time." He said, grinning.

"What was this about a fair?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." He smiled.

"Benjamin." She said with a sigh.

"Mommy." He sighed back.

"So, what did you sing at school today?" She asked, trying to get him back on task. She could tell there was more to this story, and not simply a child's embellishment.

"The farmer and the dog…"

"The farmer and the dog, huh?"

"Yeah… high ho the Darryl low…"

Brennan could see that he was struggling with the words, but he seemed happy with his rendition, so Brennan smiled as he sang and played with his toys.

His bath went along well, cleaning and washing between dinosaur attacks, when the door opened just a crack. Brennan looked up to see Booth standing in the doorway waving quietly.

"Made it home from work in one piece, I see."

"Yeah, long day." Booth nodded, glancing to Benji. "Did you tell mommy all about school today?" He asked Ben, and winked at him.

Ben smiled brightly. "Yep." He nodded. "Storytime, singing time, naptime, snack time… right, Daddy?" Ben asked.

Booth glanced to Brennan and back to Ben, a bit of a surprised look on his face. "Uh… yeah, I guess… sure."

"That's what you told me to tell mommy, right? Nothing about the fair… just the facts, man. That's what you said, right?"

Brennan's eyebrows lifted and Booth smiled sheepishly. "I…"

"Daddy? Right?"

"Right." Booth said, taking a step back.

"You." Brennan said, pointing to the little boy. "Stay right there."

"Okay." He said, watching his mother stand up and face his father. Booth held his ground, but Benjamin could tell that It was a losing battle.

"Don't move." She said to Booth, as he glanced to Ben, and to the door. "I'm serious." She said, taking a step back, she grabbed Ben's towel from the sink, and whipped it at her husband quickly.

"Ow!" he yelped, though he seemed to be slightly amused by her reaction. "That wasn't very nice."

"Nice…?" She asked, handing him the towel. "I think the word you're looking for here, Boo…. Is fair." She said, ensuring that the nickname hung in the air for a moment. "You can finish bath time." She said, glancing to Ben, who was watching curiously. "Then… you can work on tooth brushing… maybe get that bit of funnel cake from between your teeth…" She said, watching him run his tongue over his teeth. "Then… after bedtime…for Benjamin." She said, raising her eyebrow at him. "You will find me… and you're going to demonstrate some of the moves that you saw the acrobats perform at the fair today." She whispered, watching him swallow hard. "Do you understand?"

He tried to look intimidated, but the steamy look in her eyes was just a little too much of a giveaway. "I understand."

"And if you're a good boy… I won't make you wear tights." She said, leaning forward, she kissed him softly on the lips. She could feel him shiver under her touch. "And while you're working on bath time and bedtime… maybe you two can work on your secret keeping a little." She winked.

"Uh, yeah." He swallowed. "I love you."

"I'm going to go get ready for my own bath time." She said, turning from the room, she walked out into the hallway.

Booth took a moment, and heard Ben continue his dinosaur battle in the tub. He controlled his breathing after a moment and turned to face his son. "Well…"

"That was a close one, Daddy." Ben said, shaking his head. "I almost told mommy all about the fair!" He laughed, splashing one of the big dinosaurs into the water, he sent a splash into his father's pants. "Oops." He giggled, and turned his attention back to his toys.


	16. Master Mind

**_Mastermind- _**

The happy jingle of the bell on the diner door made Benji smile as he glanced up at his mother and father, before taking off toward their usual table. They were happy to be out of the cold D.C. winter, but the floors were slick from the snow that other patrons had brought in on their boots and shoes.

"Benji, please don't run." Brennan called after him as the six year old tumbled into a chair and sat up quickly with a big grin. She sighed heavily and reached the table, sitting down heavily. She was tired and worn, and not feeling entirely cheerful at the moment. Three months pregnant with a six year old, and working at the lab was more exhausting than she had expected it to be. "Benjamin." She sighed.

Booth sat down next to the squirming little boy, and nudged him. "Hey, shorty… sit…" Booth replied.

"I'm not shorty! You're shorty!" Benjamin growled with a laugh.

"Benji." Brennan sighed. "Please."

"Right… if you don't sit down… the elves are going to tell Santa that you haven't been behaving." Booth said, lifting his eyebrows at the little boy.

"Booth." Brennan sighed.

"What, Bones? It works."

"What elves?" Ben exclaimed, looking around. There was a woman several tables away, who seemed rather petite. She was minding her own business drinking a cup of coffee over a file. "Is that lady an elf?" Benji shouted. The woman looked in their direction to see the little boy pointing toward her.

"Benjamin Booth. Sit down." Brennan scolded. The little boy's eyes widened and he sat down quickly. Booth reached over and unzipped the little boy's coat, and he pulled it from his shoulders and tossed it at his father.

"Benji, please." Brennan sighed.

"What?" He shrugged.

"Seriously, Ben." Booth said. "Santa is really not going to be happy with your behavior. All you're going to get is coal for Christmas."

"Does Santa work in a coal mine when he's not delivering presents?" Ben asked.

"What?" Booth asked.

"Well, why does he carry around coal? How does he get it? Do the elves live underground and get it for him?" Ben asked.

Booth looked to Brennan. She held out her hands and shook her head. "This one is all yours." She said with a smile.

"I don't know." Booth replied, shaking his head.

"Then how do you know he'll bring me coal if I'm bad, Daddy? Did you get coal when you were a little boy? Did you know someone who got coal?"

"I knew someone…" Booth said, looking up at the waitress with an expression of relief. "Thank God."

They gave their orders and Ben settled down a little, and the three of them talked back and forth for a bit. They waited for their dinner, and Ben looked directly at his mother and smiled. "Mommy, you don't lie, right?"

"Um… no." She said, tilting her head curiously. "Why do you ask?" She said, looking to Booth, who shrugged.

"Well, Daddy sometimes likes to tease me, and tell fibs to see if I'll believe him, but you won't lie right?"

"Nope." She said, shrugging her shoulders, she glanced to Booth and noted his look of alarm. She quirked an eyebrow at him. "What?"

"It's a trap." Booth whispered across at her.

"Mommy, is Santa real?"

"Santa?" She asked, looking to her son, ignoring her husband's slightly panic stricken face. "Santa Ana?"

"Who?"

"That's Santa Claus' daughter." Booth said, grinning off Brennan's perplexed expression. He picked up his napkin and looked across at Brennan.

"No, Mommy… Santa Claus."

"Okay, right." Brennan nodded. "I would say that his presence is real." She nodded.

"Okay." Ben said, glancing to his father, he then glanced back to his mother. "And he brings toys to good kids, right?"

"And coal to bad kids."

"Booth." Brennan said, holding up a finger to Booth to hush him as she paid complete attention to Ben. Booth reached across and grabbed her hand, giving her a humored expression. "Yes, he brings gifts to little girls and boys all over the world."

"The whole world?" Ben asked skeptically.

"There are some countries that he doesn't visit… but those little boys and girls have their own traditions and beliefs that they celebrate around Christmastime, so it frees up his time and availability." She said, thinking that she had satisfied her son's curiosity.

"And how does he get to all of those places in one night, mommy?" Ben continued.

"Time zones." Booth interrupted.

Brennan glanced to Booth and gave him a crooked smile. "That's right. Around the world it is daytime and night time at different times in different areas… it's a little complicated, but if someone were to have to get all around the world in one night, and they had the means to travel quickly, it perhaps is possible to do so." She shrugged. "I've never done it myself, so I can't say that it's possible or not."

"Bones." Booth whispered, under the impression that she had only left holes for more questions, she turned her attention away from him.

"Look at that…" She smiled, looking up at the waitress. "Dinner is here."

Their meals were passed out, and they all started to eat quietly. "Mommy?" Ben asked as he munched on a french fry. "How does Santa fit down a chimney?" he asked

Booth looked up at Brennan and could see that she was at a loss. He was about to interrupt, when she smiled at her son.

"I do believe that the chimney myth is a bit exaggerated." She said softly.

"Bones." Booth whispered.

"I believe that the origins of Santa Claus have him delivering toys to children in their stockings, correct?"

"Yes." Ben nodded, happy to give some information to his mother in their very important conversation.

"Well, the children often hung their stockings up… so that they were visible, and what better place to hang them, than the hearth… that's what they call the fireplace in some places…" She explained. "Typically, the hearth is the centerpiece in many homes… so it wouldn't be missed by visitors…. I think somewhere along the way, someone thought up the story that Santa came down the chimney to leave gifts."

"If he doesn't come in through the chimney, then how does he get into the house?" Ben asked. "Does he have the security code?"

"Santa is invisible." Booth said.

"Booth." Brennan warned.

"What? He is."

"Daddy, he can't be invisible, right mommy?"

"That's right, Booth… don't be ridiculous… Santa is just magic." She said as she started to get up.

"What?" Booth asked.

"Magic, Daddy." Ben rolled his eyes.

"Bones, where are you going?"

"I have to go to the restroom." She said, leaning down to kiss his cheek. "I think you can handle the rest of his questions."

"What? No… Bones, wait…" Booth said, watching her smile sweetly as she started to walk toward the back of the diner. "Bones!"

"Daddy?" Ben asked, poking his father's arm. "Daddy? Daddy?"

"Yeah?" Booth asked, looking to the boy, he lifted his eyebrows curiously.

"If Santa makes all of the toys himself, then why do they have toy stores? Can reindeer really fly, or do they just run really fast and it looks like they're flying? If Santa eats all of those cookies, won't he get a tummy ache? When I grow up, can I be Santa Claus?..."

Booth sighed and looked longingly to the back of the diner, as Benjamin just continued his holiday interrogation.


	17. Balderdash

_**Balderdash-** _

Brennan was just putting the finishing touches on the sandwiches for lunch when she heard the shuffling of feet coming down the hallway. She turned just as her five year old son walked into the room, his hair was tousled, and his cheeks were bright red. She could see by the way he was dragging in, that he didn't feel well. "Benji, are you okay?"

"No." He rasped, letting his lower lip stick out just a little. His eyes were watery and it looked like he was about to cry. "I feel belgium." He said, watching as his mother crouched down in front of him.

"Belgium?"

"Yeah. My food swallower is hurty and my tummy feels gurgleous. Belgium."

"Sweetheart, Belgium is a country. It's not a way of feeling."

"Mommy…" He whined.

She lifted him into her arms, and could immediately feel that he had a fever. She could hear Booth getting ready upstairs, but it was very clear that one of them wouldn't be going in to work. "Booth?" She called as she put Ben's bagged lunch in the refrigerator and then walked toward the bathroom. She found some children's fever reducer in the medicine cabinet and walked toward the living room. "Booth?" She called again.

"I'll be right down." He called from upstairs.

Brennan paced for a second, trying to figure out what to do first, she decided that he would probably be more comfortable on the couch. "Alright, baby. Mommy is going to take good care of you, but I have to go talk to daddy first." Brennan said, attempting to place him on the couch, he clung to her. "Benji, you need to let go of Mommy."

"I'm cold, Mommy. If you let me go, I am going to flurge all over the couch." He pouted.

"Sweetheart, I don't understand, that's not a real word..." She said, glancing to the stairs. "You need to take your medicine, and mommy will stay home, and make you soup, and help you feel all better."

"I don't want soup, Mommy." He whimpered. "Make the belgium go away…"

"Where do you get these things from?" She said, humored by her son's imagination. Brennan rocked her son tenderly, and walked toward the stairs. Slowly, she ascended the steps and looked around for her husband. "Booth, hey…" She said, stepping into their bedroom, he was standing in front of the mirror tying his tie.

"Hey, I said I'd be right down." He said with a half smile, he turned when he saw the little boy curled into his mother's neck.

"He's not feeling well." Brennan replied. "He has a fever and a sore throat… I may have to take him into Dr. Sandy to see if he has a streptococcal infection."

"Can't you just say strep throat, Bones?" Booth teased. "Hey, I have a light load today. I'll take him to the doctors, and you can get down to the lab and work with the…" He paused, knowing that he and Brennan tried to keep the work talk to a minimum around Ben.

However, she cut him off before he could continue. "I have already held him… if he has something contagious; chances are I have already been exposed. I don't need you to get sick too." She said, watching the sympathetic look in Booth's eyes. "I know you want to protect him from this, but it's only a cold. With some antibiotics, he'll be fine by this evening."

"I know. I just feel bad." Booth said, running his hand through his son's hair, for a moment, the little boy looked over at his father. "Hey dude…"

"Mm…" Ben groaned uncomfortably.

"You look like you're feeling pretty belgium there, pal." Booth whispered, leaning forward to kiss his son's head, he looked up to see Brennan furrowing her brow. "What?" Booth asked, he turned and straightened his tie. "I am going to get going, buddy. Mommy is a doctor, so she's going to take good care of you today and make sure you feel better." Booth said, turning to see his wife watching him. "Daddy will bring home popsicles for you on his way home." He said, leaning in for a kiss on Brennan's lips. "I love you, both of you." He smiled and walked toward the door. "And Benji?" He said, just as he stepped out into the hallway, the little boy looked up at his father. "Try not to flurge on mama…" He winked, as he made his way quickly down the stairs and out the door.


	18. Don't Wake Daddy

_**Don't Wake Daddy-**_

Stakeouts meant very little to a three year old. Not that this particular three year old was participating in one, but his father had been. Four days, Booth had been out of town in an undercover assignment. It had been four days since he had seen the smile on his son's face, and felt the warmth of his bed. When he arrived home late that Thursday evening, he had hugged Bones closely for a long time, reveling in the warmth of her arms for several moments, before eagerly trekking up the stairs to his son's room. He was quiet as he opened his little boy's bedroom door and watched the moonlight play off his hair.

Booth wanted so much to walk into the room and approach his son's bed, to gather him in a hug. But he knew that it would only waken the boy, and if that happened, Booth would never get his much needed sleep. So he watched the gentle rise and fall of his son's chest for several moments until he felt Brennan's hand on his shoulder. He turned and embraced her, leaving the room door open just a crack as she let out a soft laugh, and they quietly moved toward the bedroom together.

When morning came, Brennan was out of bed and moving around before either of the two boys of the house. She showered and dressed, and heard the sound of Benji stirring in his bedroom. She left her bedroom, and closed the door quietly, just in time to see the messy brown hair of her son as he peeked from his bedroom.

"Hey." She whispered.

His little hand reached out, and he wiggled his fingers in a playful wave.

"Your daddy is home." She said. Benji smiled, and opened the bedroom door wider, moving quickly around his mother, she scooped him up. "Wait, wait…" She said, lifting him into her arms. "We should let him sleep."

Ben grunted a little in his mother's arms, but before he could protest anymore, she hurried him downstairs.

Booth had felt Bones move from the bed, and felt a soft kiss on his cheek. He listened to her moving about the room, all the while in the middle of a dreamy almost sleep. He heard the shower turn off, and her dressing quickly, and when she left the room, he heard a soft voice of Brennan talking to Benji. It had only been a second or two, and she heard them descend the stairs. This moment of peace sent him back into a peaceful slumber.

His dreams were plentiful, and the warm covers and familiar scent of his bed, his wife, his home, sent his mind to warm and comfortable places. He wasn't sure how long he had been sleeping, when his senses were heightened at the sound of his bedroom door opening. The person at the door, be it Bones or Benji, said nothing. He then heard the soft patter of two little feet making their way toward his bed. After a moment or two, he heard the sounds of something plastic right beside his face. He opened his eyes to find a plastic block toy had been fashioned in the shape of a gun, and was pointed right at him.

Booth's eyes flicked to the side, and locked them with his son's. The plastic toy was suddenly pulled from the bed, and fell to the floor, crashing onto the wood. "Oh no… oh no…" Benji said, falling to the floor, scrambling around on the floor.

Booth was very confused, moving a little, he rolled to his side. "Benji, what are you doing?" He asked.

"Shh… Mommy said not to wake you up… go back to sleep, Daddy." Benji replied.

"Benji?" Booth asked.

"Shh, shh…rock a bye, Daddy." Ben said, grabbing his toys, he gathered them in his hands and ran from the room quickly.

Booth heard the little boy go into his room, and thought nothing of it. He closed his eyes and fell back to sleep, hoping to catch up on just a little more sleep that he had lost during his four days undercover. He wasn't asleep for more than ten minutes, when he heard his bedroom door open again. This time, heavier feet.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of plastic cracking, and a sickening scraping… He opened his eyes, just in time to watch Brennan start to slide forward on one of Ben's discarded blocks. Booth pulled himself from the bed in a quick movement, rolling off the bed, he landed on the floor at the same time as Brennan, keeping her head from hitting the floor, they both let out a pain filled grunt.

There was a moment where neither one of them knew what to say to the other, as they both burst into a cascade of laughter. Lying awkwardly on the floor, they clung to one another, unable to catch their breaths. The door opened suddenly, and the sound of two little feet pattered into the room. "Mommy!" Ben exclaimed.

"Mommy is okay…" Booth said softly. "She's alright…" He said, trying to control the laughter.

"No, Daddy. She woke you up…" He shook his head in a disappointed way. "Shame, shame, Mommy…" He said, wagging his finger at her. Ben then stepped forward, picked up the toy that he had left behind earlier. "There's my other block." He said with a smile. He then turned and quietly walked out of the room, leaving his parents sprawled out on the floor, where they once again began to laugh.


	19. Labyrinth

_**Labyrinth-**_

"Benji." Temperance's voice was low and serious, but the little boy was unfazed. He curled into a tighter ball. "Benjamin."

"It's not going to work this time." Benji yelled into his legs.

"Benji."

"No! No! No!" The little boy shouted. "I don't want a brother or sister! I don't NEED a brother or sister! I am just fine NOT having one!" Ben exclaimed.

Booth looked under the diner table at the little boy. "Ben?"

"Daddy, I said no. Respect that." Six year old Benjamin growled.

Booth looked up at Brennan. "I tried."

"You said his name." Brennan argued. "That is not trying."

"What do you want me to do, Bones? Drag him out from under the table?"

"That's one of the things you could do, yes." She replied. "He's embarrassing us."

"He's not doing anything, Bones… if he wants to sit under the table and roll around in the sticky, syrupy, germy floor…" Booth said, raising his voice. He realized that other people were watching him curiously, but the little boy didn't fall for it.

"I like sticky things!" Ben shouted.

"He's got you there." Brennan argued.

Booth scowled. "Now you're not helping." Booth sighed. "I told you that we shouldn't have told him until after the baby was born."

"You don't think that he would have noticed that I was becoming larger? And that at some point, I will be carrying around a small person?"

"Maybe we should have just waited until we were home to tell him."

"Maybe." Brennan shrugged. "In any case. I'm having ice cream for dessert."

"I want ice cream!" Ben shouted from beneath the table.

"Morlocks don't get ice cream." Booth said, looking under the table at his son. Ben scowled.

"I don't know what that means." Ben sneered.

"Get up here and sit down at the table, please."

"No!" Ben shouted.

"I think we should just have our ice cream, and let him stay under the table while we enjoy it." Booth said.

"That is perfectly fine with me." Brennan said. "Better yet, why don't we get a half gallon of ice cream on the way home, and I can have the whole thing to myself." She smiled.

"I want ice cream too!" Ben exclaimed.

"Ben, get off the floor." Booth said, looking under the table.

"See, it's bothering you, isn't it… that he won't get up."

"It's not bothering me." Booth replied. "I can see that it's bothering you."

"I don't care if he sits on the floor." Brennan shrugged. "As long as I get my ice cream."

"You got it." Booth said, shifting in his seat. He started to stand up.

"Hey!" Ben exclaimed. "Where are you going?"

"Home." Brennan said.

"But you said we were getting ice cream." He said, crawling out from beneath the table, he rested his arms on one of the chairs and looked up at his father.

"I don't remember that." Booth said, glancing to Brennan. "Bones?"

"Nope." She shrugged.

"See that." Booth said. "You must not have heard right."

"Tragedy of under the table life, I'm afraid." Brennan played along. "Misinterpretation…"

"Under represented." Booth said, pointing at Brennan, who let out a laugh.

"Let's table this discussion." Brennan said with a laugh.

"Stop laughing at me." Ben exclaimed.

"I think Ben wants the floor." Booth said, listening to his wife laugh, he laughed harder when she let out a snort. "Bones!" He said, and she only laughed harder.

"Hey!" Ben exclaimed. "Hey, Hey…stop laughing!" He said, standing up, he watched as his parents tried to control their laughter.

"Booth." Brennan said, catching her breath after a moment. She nodded toward the little boy.

"Getaway?" Booth said, lifting his eyebrows, and Brennan nodded.

In one movement, he dropped the money for their dinner on the table, and scooped the little boy up into his arms. Ben was about to let out a shout, but Booth began to tickle him, and he erupted into a fit of giggles instead. "Make a break for it." Booth said, holding the boy upside down over his shoulder as he continued to tickle him.

Brennan broke for the door, weaving around the other customers as Booth followed behind, carrying the red faced, giggling table troll along with him.


	20. Crocodile Dentist

_**Crocodile Dentist-**_

"I'm sorry, who did you say you wanted to talk to?" Booth said, smiling into the line.

"Boof!" The six year old boy squeaked into the line. "Agent Boof!"

"Boof?" He chuckled. "I don't think there is anyone here by that name."

"Daddy!" Benji exclaimed.

"Oh! I think I know of one of those that are here… hang on a second…"

"Daddy, it's me! Benji!" He shouted into the line.

"Benji… Benji…" He said the name as he pretended he was trying to remember him.

"Daddy!"

"Right!" Booth laughed. "Hey, I'm kidding. What's up, kiddo?"

"Nothin'" Ben shrugged.

"You called me at work for nothing?"

"No."

"Then what do you need, buddy? Did you dial the number, or your Mama?"

"Mommy. We are having lunch."

"You are?"

"Mmhmm…" Ben replied. "I had to go to the dentist."

"Better you than me." Booth replied. "Is that why you sound all funny?"

"I didn't tell a joke, Daddy."

Booth paused and let the comment slip away into the silence. "So where are you guys getting lunch?"

"The diner. I'm having a milkshake and a cheeseburger, and French fries."

"So you're at the diner having lunch, and you didn't invite me?"

"Uh huh." Ben nodded. "Guess what, Daddy."

"What?"

"Guess."

"Better watch it, Mommy just stole a French fry!"

"She did!" Ben exclaimed. "Mommy!"

"See… she's a sneaky one."

"She is." Ben sighed. "The dentist pulled out my toof, Daddy."

"He did?"

"Daddy, the dentist is a lady."

Another pause. "So she pulled out your toof?"

"Yep. It hurt a lot… and I was bleeding… but I didn't cry."

"I would have cried."

"That's what Mommy said."

Another pause. "Can I talk to Mommy, please?"

"I don't know, can you?" Ben laughed at the joke that Booth had used on him many times, and at his father's sigh, handed the phone to his mother. "Daddy wants to know if he can talk to you." He laughed uproariously for a moment, and the phone exchanged hands.

"Hey." Brennan said, swallowing the remains of the French fry she had stolen from her son's plate.

"So I wasn't invited on your lunch date?"

"Did you finish that missing person's report on the Anderson case, and the interrogation of Sam Sears' roommates?"

"Are you asking me if I did my homework?"

"Well?"

"No."

"Get your work done, and then you can play." She said, smiling into the phone.

There was a faux frustrated sigh on the line. "How are you feeling?"

"Uncomfortable and unattractive." She said honestly.

"I'm sorry."

"It's fine… Ben, stop eating your cheeseburger with your spoon… and do not blow bubbles in… Ben…"

"I can see that you're a little busy…" Booth said a bit wistfully.

"I can talk for another minute or… Ben, I am serious… give me the spoon. Ow! Do not bite!"

"Bones? It's okay." Booth replied, realizing that the phone had been placed on the table. He heard a scuffle, and Ben shrieking. He heard his partner's 'mommy' voice come out in full force, and then the tears. "Bones?" Booth called into the line. "Bones? Hey…" He said loudly, noticing that people were glancing into his office. He quickly hung up the phone, and logged off his computer, and made his way quickly to the diner to rescue his partner.


	21. Apples to Apples

_**Apples to Apples-  
><strong>_

Brennan was thankful for maternity leave, thankful that she'd be able to catch up on some of the sleep that she had lost in the final days of her pregnancy, through the first couple of weeks of having the new baby in the house. She never thought that having a six year old and a newborn around would be considered easy, for she had her husband to lean on in times of frustration or exhaustion.

Standing in the kitchen making Benjamin's sandwich, she noticed that his playing had become quiet. A small sense of panic rose in her belly when she thought of the new baby sitting in his bouncy chair on the floor. He wasn't very close to Benji, but close enough that the little boy might notice she had stepped away for a moment.

She was going to call out to him, but instead looked around the corner. The small corner where Benji had been playing was vacated, and her eyes flashed to the other end of the room. Ben was sitting in front of the bouncy chair, staring curiously at the baby. Brennan didn't want to frighten him, or make him think what he was doing was wrong, so she just watched. He reached forward and pushed at the little button on the chair. The little button was meant to turn on the little vibration of the chair, something meant to stimulate the baby. He pushed the button again, looking at the baby and back to the button.

Ben then turned his head and looked up at his mother. His eyes were wide with wonder, and a little bit of worry that he had left his toys. He had been told to stay with his toys, that the baby was mommy's responsibility. "Sorry." Ben said, backing away.

"No." Brennan said, a kind smile on her face. "No, it's okay, buddy." She said, walking to the children, she sat on the carpet beside Ben, and pulled him into her lap. She gently kissed his head. "What do you think of your baby brother?" She asked.

"He's okay." Ben said softly, shrugging his shoulders. "He cries a lot."

"That's because he can't talk yet. You used to cry a lot."

"He poops his pants all the time."

"You used to do the same." Brennan shrugged.

"He drools."

"Babies drool." She sighed. "Why don't you tell me some things you like about Nicholas."

"Um…" Ben said, looking up at his mom, and back at the baby. His bright blue eyes were staring back at him, and his mouth opened in a yawn. "I don't know."

"What do you like about him?"

"I like his eyes. They're the same color as yours."

"They're the same color as your eyes too." She replied.

"Really?" Ben asked, looking up at his mother, he smiled.

"Yep… you never noticed the color of your eyes?"

"Nope." He shrugged. "He has brown hair like me too." He smiled. "I have brown hair."

"You do." Brennan smiled. "You both have brown hair and blue eyes."

Ben reached forward and moved his fingers across the baby's feet. "He's not ticklish."

"I know someone who is…" Brennan replied, she reached down and started tickling the little boy's feet. He let out a mighty squeal and laughed, rolling onto the floor, Brennan stopped tickling, but he laughed for a moment or two more, when he realized he had startled the baby. He jumped up, "Oh no, Mommy!" She exclaimed when Nicholas began to cry.

"It's okay." Brennan said. "He's not used to loud noises just yet." She said, reaching forward, pulling the baby from the carrier, she could see that Ben was fretting over scaring the baby.

"Don't cry, Nickels." Ben said softly. "Please don't cry. I'm sorry. Big brother is sorry." He said, watching his mother calm the baby. "I'm sorry, Nickels."

Brennan looked to the little boy and smiled. "He's alright, Benji. He just has to get used to loud noises."

Ben sighed, but refused to keep his eyes off of his brother. "Can I hold him?"

"I thought you said that he poops and cries too much."

"Yeah." Ben said, still holding his arms out. "But he's my brother. He can if he wants."

Brennan smiled as Nicholas calmed, and glanced to the couch. "You can hold him, just sit up on the couch over there, and grab a pillow." She said.

Ben rushed to the couch and climbed onto it, holding a pillow on his lap, he patted it lightly. Brennan stood and walked toward him with the bundle, carefully positioning the pillow to help Ben hold the baby. "Alright, be careful his head, and…" Instead of lecturing she simply showed him how to hold the baby, crouching in front of him, she smiled at the moment they were sharing. Ben was so happy, his smile bright. "Did Parker hold me like this when I was a baby?"

"Yep." She nodded. "Parker held you…"

"He's a good big brother." Ben said. "Even if he's got brown eyes and yellow hair."

"Your daddy has brown eyes, you know."

"Oh." Ben said softly. "Are daddy's feet ticklish?"

Brennan smiled and watched her son for a moment. When she didn't answer, he looked up at her. "We'll have to see later… Catch him when he's not paying attention. Test out our theory."

Ben let out a giggle, and when the baby stirred, he hushed, his eyes widening. "Shh… baby Nickels… shhh…" He whispered, and the baby settled in his brother's arms, his eyes closing once again. "I love you, little brother." Ben whispered. "I love you."


	22. Hungry, Hungry Hippos

_**Hungry, Hungry Hippos-  
><strong>_

It had been a little more than ten minutes after ordering lunch, when Angela wandered into Brennan's office. She leaned against the doorway and sighed. Brennan looked up at her and gave her a supportive smile. "It'll be here in twenty minutes."

"Thank God." Angela said, wobbling into the room on uneasy feet, she sat down hard on the couch. "I am starving."

"Me too." Brennan said, lifting a carrot stick from the small baggie on her desk. She looked to her friend. "Want one?"

"Sure." Angela said, watching her friend stand up with the baggie and walk toward her, she too sat down hard on the couch. She handed Angela the baggie, and munched on the carrot stick in her hand. Both were eight months pregnant, and both were absolutely exhausted. Their feet lifted almost simultaneously and landed on the coffee table, and they stared off into the room blankly.

"Did you get the sheets for the crib?" Brennan asked.

"They didn't have the ones I want." Angela pouted.

"They didn't have the flannel blankets that I wanted. I'm sending Booth to another boutique this afternoon. I'll have him look for the sheets."

"Thanks." Angela nodded. "When is that food supposed to be here?"

"Nineteen minutes."

Angela nodded her head, and pulled another carrot stick from the baggie. "I should have brought something. How is Benji?"

"He's fine. Once he got over the initial shock of the baby, he has been very helpful. This morning he found my feet for me and helped me put my shoes on." Brennan smiled.

"Do you think I can borrow him?" Angela asked with a tinge of humor, though she was being sincere. They jumped when the voice from the doorway let out a laugh. Both turned to see Booth standing in the doorway shaking his head.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were interrogating our suspect." Brennan asked, her voice in full blown whine.

"What? You don't like seeing me around anymore? You get what you want, and then you just send me off to my own office to do 'my' thing?" He asked with a laugh. He strutted across the room like a rooster, a smarmy grin on his face as he flopped down on the couch across from the two women. "And what is this, you look like a couple of beach…"

"Watch it, Feeb." Angela snapped.

"Beach needing ladies…" Booth stumbled, sitting forward, he reached for the carrot sticks.

"Don't touch." Brennan grumbled, and watched Booth snap back his hand.

"So what has you two with the pinchy faces and snappy tongues?" Booth asked.

"We're hungry." Angela sighed.

"Right." Booth nodded. "Do you need me to get you anything? Order you something? Pick something up?"

"Would you use the siren?" Brennan asked, lifting her eyebrows, she glanced to Angela and the girls shared a devious grin.

"No." Booth replied.

"Then what good are you to us? At least our pizza guy is willing to go through a red light or two to get to us in a reasonable amount of time. But my own husband… the man that I have chosen to carry his children for nine excruciating months… and he won't just press one tiny little button for…"

"Oh look at that…" Booth said, holding up his phone. "Text message… got to go…"

"You did not get a text message!" She exclaimed watching him stand up.

"Sorry Bones… busy super secret FBI stuff here…" He said, moving toward the door. "I love you."

She glared and he refused to leave.

"Bones…" He tipped his head.

"I love you too." She said as he smiled and stepped out of the office. "That doesn't mean that you're off the hook!" She exclaimed after him, watching him walk swiftly through the lab.

"You shouldn't have let him off so easily."

"I didn't." She said, glancing to her friend, she started to stand up.

"What do you mean?"

"His keys fell out of his pocket when he stood up." She walked toward the couch and lifted the key ring up, swinging it around her finger with a smile. "He's not going anywhere."

"Nice." Angela grinned, and watched Brennan pocket the keys, as she sat down in the couch that Booth had just vacated.


	23. Jenga

_**Jenga-**_

The sounds of blocks pouring out onto the hardwood floor could be heard downstairs in the living room. Brennan and Booth exchanged a glance, and then just listened. They could hear the sound of the three year old talking out loud, maybe to his toys, maybe to himself, and the sound of blocks being tossed back into buckets. Then they heard the bucket dumped onto the floor, and feet stomping.

"Benji, are you okay up there?" Brennan called. There was a moment's pause, and then the sound of blocks being plopped into the bucket. "He's been up there all afternoon," she whispered to Booth.

"I'm sure he's fine," Booth said, flipping through a file folder. He typed something on his laptop and looked up when they heard the container being dumped onto the floor again. He glanced to Brennan and she raised her eyebrow. "He's just playing." Booth shrugged and went back to his paperwork. "What do you say we…" Suddenly, Booth's sentence was interrupted by a shout, and a loud crash. He leapt from his spot on the couch and took the steps two at a time. "Ben!" He called. "Benji, are you okay? Talk to me, pal!" Booth called.

"Oops." Ben muttered from his room.

Booth tried to open the door, but it was blocked by something. "Ben, talk to me, buddy." The panic was evident in his voice, and without realizing it, he had only instilled panic in the little boy in the room.

"Oh no… oh no…" Ben said from inside the room.

"What's going on?" Brennan asked from behind her husband, she reached for the doorknob and also pushed, getting nowhere. "Benji, are you okay? Talk to mommy, baby!" She said, pushing at the door. The door opened just slightly, and she could see him moving around, but couldn't see his face.

"Bones, we can't get in, he knocked over something across the door. Benji are you alright?" Booth called. There was still panic in his voice.

Suddenly, Ben let out a heart breaking sob. "Booth, get in there!" Brennan exclaimed, pushing at the door. "He could be hurt!"

"He's not hurt, Bones. He's scared." Booth said. "Benji, are you okay?" Booth asked. "Buddy, its daddy and mommy and we want to make sure you're not hurt."

"Baby, please…" Brennan begged, pressing her face against the door, she pushed with her hands and they managed to get the door opened a little more, she could reach her hand around. After a moment, she felt two hands grab her hand. "There's my boy."

"Mommy, it fell down." He said, tugging on her fingers. "It fell down, Mommy."

"It's alright, buddy… we'll get you out of there," Booth called. He looked to Brennan. "How do we get him out of there?"

She glared at Booth and sighed, closing her eyes for a moment. "Daddy is going to figure out something, baby boy."

"I want a hug, Mommy." Benji started to cry again.

"Oh, sweetie, don't cry… don't cry, buddy," Brennan said, squeezing his hand. "It's okay. Are you hurt, did you get hurt when the bookshelf fell?" She asked.

"No." Ben sniffled. "No…"

"Good." She said softly.

"Bones, you're going to have to get him away from the door if you want me to try to get him out."

"Benji, can you go and sit on your bed while we try to get you out?"

"I don't want to…" He pouted and stomped his feet, hanging over the fallen bookshelf, he held his mother's hand tightly. "Mommy, just pull me out…"

"Sweetheart, you are a little too big to fit through that little crack in the door." She said, feeling him let go of her hand, he moved forward and pressed his face against the crack in the door. "See, you're a big boy," Brennan reasoned.

"Daddy." Benji whimpered. "Save me."

The words that slipped from his son's mouth nearly broke his heart, and the hand that reached out for him was only sealing the deal. "Alright, buddy…" Booth said, leaning forward to look into the room. He could see that there wasn't any easy way to get into the room without some damage. "What does Uncle Jack always say when he's about to do an experiment?"

"Um…"

"Come on… you know…" Booth said, trying to get the anxiety from his voice. "What does Uncle Jack say?"

"Fire in a hole?"

"Yep, do you know what that means?"

"Hide?"

"Right," Booth nodded. "So go hide somewhere safe… and shout to me when you're hidden."

"Okay." Ben said, sliding over the bookcase, he ran across the room and into his closet. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" Ben screamed from the inside of the closet.

"You're going to want to stand back, Bones." Booth said, stepping back.

"What are you going to…"

"FIRE IN THE HOLE!" Booth shouted, and swung his backside around and into the door. The door splintered, and the bookcase moved about a foot, enough for Booth to reach in and force himself through the opening in the door. He got into the room, and Benji burst from the closet.

"Daddy!" Ben shouted, leaping into his father's arms, Booth turned and faced Brennan sheepishly, the little boy's arms around his neck tightly.

"I think we're going to need another bookcase." She said, looking down at the splintered wood.

"And a new door." Booth said, looking at the crack down the middle.

"I think we're done with doors for a little while." She said, reaching for the little boy, who moved from his father's arms and into his mother's.


	24. Perfection

_**Perfection-**_

Benji sat quietly at the dining room table, crayon in hand as he carefully traced across the paper. He furrowed his brow, and his tongue stuck out one side of his mouth as he very diligently drew across the paper. He finished, lifted it up, and stared at it for a moment. Unhappy with the symmetry of the heart he drew, he let out an irritated grunt, and crumpled the paper up, tossing it onto the ground.

"Hey, hey…" Booth said, entering the room. His six year old son sat on his knees at the table, and the floor was littered with crumpled pieces of paper. "What's going on here? You're killing trees."

"Paper doesn't grow on trees, daddy." Ben said, starting to draw again on his paper. He finished half of the heart and sighed, crumpling up the paper again.

"That looked good, what are you doing?" Booth asked, sitting next to his son at the table, he looked down at the next piece of paper.

"I'm trying to make Mommy a Valentime." Benji said, sitting back in the chair. "I can't make a heart right."

"I thought you did a great job." Booth said.

"No. It didn't come out right, Daddy. It has to be perfect."

"Perfect?" Booth let out a laugh, and Ben glared at him. "It doesn't have to be perfect, Benji. Mommy will love it because it's from you."

"Mommy likes things perfect." Ben said, eyeing his father. "Doesn't she?"

Booth lifted an eyebrow, watching his son's expression. "She is pretty picky, isn't she?"

"Perfect." Ben replied. "Mommy is perfect."

Booth watched his son go back to trying to draw the perfect heart. "Can I tell you a story?" Booth asked, watching his son nod. "A long, long time ago… before Mommy was your Mommy… she made a mistake once."

"No she didn't." Ben replied.

"She sure did… and Daddy got upset at her, and she was sad because she made a mistake."

"You're fibbing." Ben glared.

"Does Daddy tell lies?"

"You once told me that rain was made from someone squeezing the clouds. There was the time you said that if I crossed my eyes they would stick. I do it all the time, and they never stick like that. Then you told me…"

"Hey, hey…" Booth said, interrupting the boy. "I get the point, I get the point. I'm telling the truth now. There's no such thing as the perfect person."

"What happened with Mommy when she was sad. How did you make her happy?"

"I told her how much I love her." Booth replied.

"And she fell for it?" Ben asked, his voice incredulous as he let out a laugh.

"She fell for it? Hey!" Booth teased. "Not cool."

Ben giggled and crumpled up his latest heart drawing. "Sorry, Daddy." He smiled.

"Do you want me to show you a cool trick?" Booth asked, taking a piece of paper from the pile in front of Ben. The little boy watched Booth carefully fold the paper in half. He borrowed a crayon and drew half of a heart on the paper. Then, he took the scissors and very carefully cut the paper around the heart. Benji watched as the paper fell to the table, and Booth carefully unfolded the sheet and set it flat on the table.

"Daddy. That's perfect!" Ben exclaimed.

"I think it's pretty good." Booth said, proud of the paper heart, he watched Ben hold it down on the table for a moment.

Booth watched Ben happily decorate the heart and draw on it, writing his name slowly across the bottom of it.

They heard the door open and close, and the sound of Brennan's voice broke through the silence. Ben leapt from his chair and darted toward the door. "Mommy! I made you the perfect Valentime! All by myself!" He exclaimed as he tugged at her.

She took the heart from Ben and smiled as Booth walked into the room. "What do you think?" Booth asked.

Brennan smiled at the Valentine, and smiled at her son. "I think it is perfect." She smiled, poking her son's nose. "Just like you."

Ben wrapped his arms around his mother and squeezed her tightly, giving his father a knowing look as Booth smiled back at the boy with a wink.


	25. CandyLand

**Candyland**

Booth came into the house and closed the door behind him. Brennan had left the lab early to pick up Ben, so she knew that both of them were home, though it seemed very quiet in the house. "Bones?" He called, hearing noise upstairs, he draped his coat over the banister on the stairs and started walking up.

"I'm up here, Booth." Brennan called after her husband.

"Hey…" Booth said, coming up the stairs, he walked around the corner to find Brennan looking through her jewelry box.

"Hey." She replied, looking up.

"Where's Ben?" He asked. Typically, the four year old was wired when he got home, running to meet his father excitedly.

"In his room, I suppose." She said, looking up at him. "He didn't greet you?"

"No."

The parents exchanged a look, and Booth turned to the hallway and looked down toward his son's room. "Ben?" He called.

There was no reply.

"Benji?" He called, walking toward his son's room, he opened the door. The room was as messy as it always was, but there was no sign of the little boy. Booth knew better than to panic right away, this wasn't the first time that his son had decided to hide on him. "Benji, are you in here?" Booth said, kneeling down, he looked under the bed. He looked up at Brennan as she stood in the doorway. "He's not in here."

"Was the door locked when you got home?" Brennan asked, a little worry in her voice as she opened up his closet. The little boy wasn't hiding among his stuffed animals either.

"Yeah." Booth nodded.

"He has to be here somewhere then." She smiled.

"Benji, come on, buddy…" Booth called. "Daddy's home! Don't you want to say hi to daddy?"

"Perhaps you're losing popularity." She shrugged, turning to walk out of the room, she heard him scoff at her comment as he walked out of the room and nudged her. She let out a laugh as he looked in the bathroom, and the office, and again in their bedroom. "Benji." Brennan called.

Booth gave her a confused look and walked slowly down the stairs. He walked toward the kitchen, and he heard a slight rustling sound. "Benjamin. Daddy is getting worried… where are you?" There was no sound. He remained quiet and after another moment or two, he heard a little more rustling, the sound coming from the kitchen. "Benji?"

Brennan stepped into the room behind him, and leaned against him, listening silently.

They heard the sound again. Brennan pointed to one of the cupboards in the kitchen. They exchanged a glance and quietly stepped toward it together. Booth gave Brennan a glance, pointing to the cupboard and she nodded. He reached forward slowly and looped his finger on the handle. With his other hand, he indicated a count from three.

One. Two. Three.

"Ben!" Booth exclaimed as the little boy jumped. His face was covered in chocolate, and from the look on it, his father's surprise had frightened him. Immediately, he started to cry.

"Booth!" Brennan exclaimed, reaching down to extract the little boy who was curled up in the cupboard sobbing. "You scared him!"

As she pulled him into her arms, dozens of M&M candies started to pour from his hands, his mouth, and a large package of the candies fell to the floor, littering the ground around them. "Hey… Hey… he was the one that…" Booth said, looking at the boy as he pushed his face into his mother's neck. "Aw… Benji…" Booth said, trying to be concerned for his son being scared by him shouting, but at the same time assessing the mess that was quickly becoming worse. The little boys tears subsided just as quickly as they had started, and Brennan pulled him from her neck and looked at his face. His cheeks were chock full of M&Ms, puffed out and full of the forbidden treat. His mouth was coated with chocolate up to his nose. Booth wasn't even sure if one or two hadn't made their way up into his nose. "What on earth were you doing, Benji?"

Benji looked at his father and then to his mother, and back to his daddy once again. "Melts in my hands too, Daddy." He said, lifting his chocolaty hand to his mouth, he gave it a sloppy lick, as both of his parents tried desperately not to laugh.


	26. Baseball

**Baseball-**

Benji moved his feet as fast as he could to keep up with his father, the crowds of people around them were overwhelming, and his hand gripped Booth's with incredible strength. He thought of asking his father to slow down, but figured that it would only last for a moment. He could feel the electricity and excitement as they made their way through the throngs of people to the gate. The crowd was peppered with people wearing red jerseys and t-shirts, baseball caps. He had his jersey on too, a little big, but he didn't mind, and his hat sat a bit askew on his little head. Booth slowed down and tugged his arm, pulling the five year old up and into his arms. He squealed with excitement as he came face to face with has daddy.

"Almost there." Booth said, stopping for a second, he turned. "Parker, are you coming?" He called, as Benji watched his half brother appear from behind the obese gentleman who had muscled his way through the crowd.

"Yeah." Parker rolled his eyes as he made a face, catching up with Booth. "Dad, I'm hungry."

"Wait until we get into the ballpark, you can have whatever you want once we sit down."

"Anything?" Benji asked as Booth smiled at his boy, straightening the hat on his head, he smiled.

"Sure."

"Mommy says no refined sugar, and hot dogs are made of pig feet." Benji said, as Booth pulled the tickets from his pocket and handed them to Parker, letting the older boy lead them toward the turnstile into the stadium.

"Just like I told you at the Zoo yesterday, and the water park two days ago, buddy. Mommy is spending her vacation doing what mommy likes, right?"

"Digging up bones."

"That's right, digging up bones." Booth nodded his head. "And we're doing what we like, right boys?" He said as they walked through the turnstiles together as Parker took care of the tickets. Booth gave his older son a pat on the back, and the three of them walked among the crowd toward the section, and to their seats. They were close to the action, and Benji sat between his big brother and his father.

They settled in and the game started, as Booth watched his wiggling son beside him. He watched the players on the field intently, and furrowed his brow. A vendor walked by, and his eyes lit up. "Daddy, I'm thirsty." He sighed.

"Why don't we wait a little bit, watch some of the game, and we'll get a drink in a little while."

"I don't know if I can wait." He said, smacking his lips. "I think I'm dying."

Booth lifted an eyebrow. "You're not dying."

"Yep." He said, smacking his lips again. "I can feel it." He sighed.

"Watch the game."

His reply was greeted with a scowl from the boy, who huffed as he sat down. They watched for a few moments, and Booth glanced to his younger son, watching as he slid his bottom off the chair. "Benji." Booth said, catching the boy's eyes as he looked in his direction. "Sit up."

"I'm dying." He whispered, touching this throat as he made a dry, coughing sound.

"You're not dying, sit up."

Another glare, and he sat up slowly, letting out a dramatic sigh.

After the first inning, Parker glanced to Booth. "Dad?" Parker said, grabbing his father's attention. "Can I go get a soda and a hot dog?"

"Sure." Booth said, grabbing a twenty dollar bill from his pocket, he handed it to Parker.

"I want a soda and a hot dog too!" Benji said, his eyes widening.

"What about sugar and pig feet?"

"I like sugar and pig feet." Ben challenged. "A lot."

"Fine." Booth said, glancing to Parker, the older boy just nodded, and shuffled his way through the row to the steps. Booth watched him as he disappeared into the tunnel and was about to turn his attention to the game when he noticed that Ben was turned around in his seat. "Hey. The game is over there."

"What game?" Ben asked, catching his father off guard, he turned his head and glanced to the field, and then focused his attention back to something behind them.

Booth shook his head and watched the game for a little while longer, keeping an eye on Ben in the seat next to him. He was smiling, and hiding behind his chair, and then buried his face in Booth's arm as he turned around. Booth glanced behind them and could see there was a woman two rows behind them sitting alone, with a smile on her face. She was attractive, dark hair, and blue eyes, making him miss his own blue eyed beauty. He flashed her a smile and gave his son a little poke. He looked up at his father. "Are you flirting with that lady back there?"

"I don't know what that means." Benji mumbled into his father's arm and turned around, sending the woman behind them a glance and a shy smile.

"It means that you like that lady back there, because you keep watching her and smiling at her."

"You smiled at her, daddy." Ben mumbled, glancing back again.

"Daddy was being polite." He said, as Parker shuffled back with a box full of various foods, and two very large drinks.

"Hey, I only gave you a twenty…" Booth said, as Parker looked at his father.

"I had money left over from the yesterday and the day before." Parker shrugged, handing his little brother a soda that could only be handled with two hands, and not lifted.

"Don't you think that soda is a little too big for him?" Booth asked.

Parker shrugged and sat down. "You guys can share."

"Parker, his bladder is the size of his fist." Booth said, holding his younger son's hand out, the little boy spread his fingers wide, and Booth dropped his hand.

"Probably smaller." Parker muttered as he shoved the hot dog into his mouth, Booth grabbed the rest of the tray from him and carefully traded the gigantic soda for a hot dog. Ben settled in and started munching away at the hot dog.

The game went on, and the three of them ate and cheered. When the hot dogs had been devoured, another vendor walked by with cotton candy. "OH!" Ben exclaimed "Daddy! I want cotton candy!"

"You don't need cotton candy, you're hyper enough."

The vendor walked up and down the aisles calling out for cotton candy customers, and Ben waved his arms. "Me! Me! I want some!"

"Benji." Booth whispered, catching the eye of the vendor. "No, no cotton candy."

"Here, Ben." Parker said, handing his brother a five dollar bill, the little boy jumped up and waved it in the air.

"Parker!" Booth whispered behind the little boy as the vendor smiled and walked toward them. He sent his money down the line, and Parker smirked and shrugged, paying attention to the game.

"What? He wanted cotton candy." Parker said as the little boy sat down in his seat and buried his face in his sugary treat.

They watched the game through another two innings before Ben started wiggling in his seat again. "Daddy? Daddy, I really really have to go potty." Benji whined.

"Alright, pal." Booth said, looking away from the game, he glanced to Parker, who was watching the game intensely. Booth wasn't sure if it was because he was into the game, or if he just didn't want to take his brother to the restroom. "We'll be right back."

"Mmhm." Parker muttered as Booth lifted Benji up and shuffled down the aisle of people. He hurried down the steps toward the men's room. They got to the bathroom and thankfully the line wasn't too long to get inside. Booth set his son on the floor as they got to the stall.

"Hey." Booth said, as Ben turned around. "Don't touch anything."

"How am I supposed to pee if I can't touch anything?" He asked.

"I mean… don't touch the toilet, don't touch the… just go to the bathroom, please." Booth said, glancing back at the other men who were waiting in line.

Ben gave his father a perplexed look as he stepped into the stall.

"And don't lock the…" Booth said, just as the lock slid closed. "Door." Booth sighed.

He waited patiently as Ben did his business, and leaned against the wall as he waited, and waited…

"Daddy?" Ben said from the stall.

"Benji."

"I have to poop too."

"Okay, pal." Booth said, trying to hide his embarrassment as he caught the smirks from a couple of baseball fans who were entering and leaving the restroom. "Just hurry."

"Daddy?" Ben called.

"Yes?"

"Are you going to tell Mommy about all of the bad stuff I ate?"

"Not if you don't tell her first." Booth replied.

Ben continued in the stall. "Daddy?"

Booth sighed. "Yes, Benji."

"Nothing, just making sure you're still there."

"Yes… still here…" Booth said with an exasperated sigh. "Are you done yet?"

"Almost."

Another two minutes, and Booth sighed. "Ben, are you…" And he heard the toilet flush. He whispered a silent 'thank you', and the lock slid open, and Ben stepped out.

"All done?" Booth asked.

"I have to wash my hands." Ben said, stepping toward the sink, Booth lifted him up, and helped him wash his hands, grabbing a paper towel, he exited the bathroom with the boy as quickly as possible. They made their way quickly back to their seats, and Parker looked up.

"Missed a home run." Parker said, as Booth glanced to the scoreboard and set Benji in the seat beside him.

"Seriously?" Booth asked, watching his son's head nod, with his eyes focused on the game.

Booth watched for another inning, and glanced to Ben again, as he sat backwards on his chair, peeking over the back of the chair at the woman that had caught his attention. "Looks like someone has a girlfriend…" Booth teased.

He turned in his seat and buried his head in his father's arm again. "You're a little flirt."

"No…" Ben squeaked and turned in his seat, pulling himself toward his father, Booth lifted him onto his lap. "She's not my girlfriend." He said, resting his head on his father's shoulder.

"No?"

"No… I already have a girlfriend."

"Really?" Booth asked, looking at his son as he smiled.

"Yep, Mommy… Mommy is my girlfriend."

"What?" Booth asked. "You're trying to steal my woman?"

"Yep." He smiled.

"Well, your mommy is pretty awesome, isn't she?"

"She's the bestest." Ben agreed, settling back in his father's arm. "But I wish she was here."

"Me too, kiddo… Me too."


	27. Let's Go Fishin'

**Let's go Fishin' **

The trip down to the lake was quiet, but mostly because the six year old in the car seat in the back had slept the entire time. Parker looked to the back seat and back at his father. "I think he's zonked, Dad."

"He'll be fine once we get to the lake. Remember, we want to get there early, so the fish are just waking up. Aren't you hungry when you first wake up."

"I guess." Parker shrugged.

"You guess, you guess." Booth laughed. He pulled into the gravel parking lot and put the SUV in park. He turned off the car and opened his door, climbing out.

"You get your brother up, and I'll get the gear."

"Why don't you get Benji up? I can get the gear, Dad." Booth furrowed his brow and Parker lifted his eyebrows. "What? He won't listen to me."

"Right, and he listens to me all of the time." Booth said, wiggling the fingers that had previously been broken.

"That was your fault, Dad. Who puts their fingers in the way of a closing door?" Parker said, jumping from the passenger seat, he quickly closed his door and moved around the back of the SUV.

Booth glared at Parker and opened the back seat, his eyes falling on the young boy strapped in his car seat. His head was leaning to the side, and his nose twitched slightly. His cheeks were bright red, and his brown hair, messy. "Ben?" Booth said, trying not to frighten the boy. "Benji."

Ben's eyes opened slowly, and his brow furrowed. "Mommy," he grumbled.

"Mommy isn't here, pal. It's Daddy."

His lower lip stuck out and his eyes narrowed, and it was obvious that the pout was one that was frequently given. "Aw, pal, we're going fishing, remember?"

"Is mommy going fishing?"

Parker popped his head over the back seat over Ben's shoulder. "No girls allowed."

Ben scowled for a moment, looking between his brother and Booth, and obliged his father unbuckling him. Booth lifted him out of the car, and he instantly buried his head in Booth's neck. "It'll take him a couple minutes to wake up." Booth said, catching the smile on Parker's face as he collected the gear. "Do you have everything?"

"Yeah." Parker said, grabbing the tackle box and poles, Booth took the small backpack and swung it onto his back, and grabbed the cooler with his free hand, locked the car, and the three of them walked down the trail toward the lake.

Once they were all settled by the lake, Booth tucked Ben into the blanket from the backpack, and made him as comfortable as he could. He helped Parker get the fishing poles ready, and the two of them settled on their spots and cast out into the water. The sun was making the sky glow a light blue, and the colors of the sunrise reflected on the water, as the two of them sat peacefully beside one another. Line after line was cast into the water, and father and son watched the gentle ripple of the wind on the water, as Ben snored quietly behind them.

Until he wasn't.

Until something woke him up abruptly. Just as Booth was placing a worm on the hook, Ben let out a loud, ear piercing scream. His hand jerked, sending the hook directly into his hand. "SON OF A…"

"Dad!" Parker exclaimed as Booth turned to see Ben standing on the blanket, his mouth wide open as he sucked in a deep breath.

"Benjamin, what's wrong?" Booth exclaimed, stumbling over the stump he had been sitting on toward his son, the hook still in his hand, his fishing pole dragging behind him, as Ben let out another scream, this time longer and pain filled.

He got to Ben, and started looking him over, as the boy screamed and trembled directly in Booth's face, trying to catch his breath. His face was bright red and his fists were balled as Booth lifted him up. "It's okay, buddy, it's okay!" Booth exclaimed.

Ben wrapped his arms around his father's neck, and Booth lifted him up as he continued to scream and cry into his father, gasping for air. Booth scrambled over the blanket, his hand covered in blood as the hook continued to stick out of it.

"What are you looking for?" Parker said as he scrambled to the blanket, trying to figure out what his father was doing.

"I'm trying to see what he's screaming about. Was it a spider, a snake? Is he just…" Booth said, getting blood on the blanket, on himself, and on Ben as he pulled at the blanket.

"Dad, you're getting blood on everything!" Parker exclaimed.

"Here, take him." Booth said, handing the boy to Parker, he reached down and yanked the hook from his hand, letting out a muffled expletive as he shoved his hand to his mouth. All he could hear was Ben screaming, and Parker trying to calm him down, and suddenly behind him there was a splash. "Parker!" Booth exclaimed, whipping around to see what had happened, his eyes widened.

Ben was no longer screaming, and Parker was no longer struggling with him, but only because the six year old was now sitting in the lake. Parker was standing on the shore, staring at his brother for a moment.

Ben just stared up at his brother.

"Parker, what did you do?" Booth exclaimed, clamoring toward the shore, he touched Parker's shoulder as he passed him, and reached for Ben. Ben's look of shock remained on his face as Booth pulled him from the water. "Parker?" Booth said, holding the now shivering boy against him, he noticed that Parker had an amused look on his face.

Suddenly, the boy let out a laugh. His laugh was followed by a giggle from the little one in his arms. "Will one of you please tell me what's going on?" Booth asked.

Parker just simply continued laughing, holding his hand on his stomach as he closed his eyes. Booth couldn't help but find humor in the entire situation, even if he had no clue what was going on. "Parker?" Booth laughed.

"I… I didn't know what to do!" Parker exclaimed between giggles. "I just… I… I just threw him in the water. I'm sorry!" He continued to giggle.

Ben was giggling now too, though his soaked clothes meant they would have to pack everything in, and call their fishing day short.

The three of them stood on the bank of the pond, laughing hysterically as all thoughts of the screaming little boy faded away. Whether it was a bad dream, or something had simply startled him, they never learned, and that just seemed to be a small part of the moment that they shared that afternoon.


End file.
